Out Think, Out Smart, Out Gas Part 3
by Resurgent-class
Summary: Season 1 Story 8.1 Takes place in Season 1, between episodes #8 The Day Smart Turned Chicken and #9 Satan Place. We switch to crystalline forests, revivifying chilled air and majestic snow covered mountains (sorry we can't SEE any of this in the fan-fic…sigh) as Max, 99 and CONTROL pursue SS-19 and her KAOS lieutenants to beautiful Colorado!
1. Chapter 1

**Out Think, Out Smart, Out Gas**

 **Part 3**

 **Hey everyone! Welcome da Part 3! At your own time and appreciate your reading!**

 **A Get Smart Fan Fiction**

 **By** **Resurgent** **-class**

 **Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY GET SMART ORIGINAL SERIES CHARACTERS**

 **CHAPTER 1**

The monstrous, seemingly triumphant roar of the battering ram, forklift prong armed Metro van almost drowned out their ability to hear each other. Max and 99 darted glances right behind them through the rear windshield. It unfortunately conveyed an increasingly bleak prognosis as the tank truck parked right in line with the vertical arm of the junction grew increasingly large with each second.

Max palmed the horn hoping to alert the driver. 99 realised they could barely hear the horn at all with the noise they were drowned in but she hoped it was apparent to the gas station.

Inside the gas station, seated behind the counter in the convenience store with his feet up and back to the entrance, the cashier, his uniform cap pushed back on his curly hair yelled at the black and white image on the t.v set on the counter.

"Oh come ON! Are you fighting with your EYES closed?!"

On the screen, the 2 boxers in the ring hammered and pounded at each other. The tank truck driver, a burly man in a white t-shirt and denim overalls stood, elbow on the counter and back to the glass wall of the convenience store watching the fight as well.

"I feel like I'M in the ring just watching this loser!" the driver swore.

Tossing his hands up, the cashier remarked.

"Why get in the ring at ALL if you're just gonna let the other guy win?!"

Max kept his palm pressed to the horn while he and 99 both kept looking at the ever nearing gasoline truck, both praying for some kind of response.

"Ninety-Nine!" Max yelled still pressing on the horn as their Sunbeam continued to surge backwards towards the junction at the monstrous force of the black van. "You know what I've just about had enough of on this case?!"

"What's that Max?!" 99 yelled her inquiry and Max shook his head as he stared at their impending combustible death and swore through tight, thin lips.

"Gas stations and GAS!"

"Did you hear something?" the driver away from the T.V and stared about the store.

The cashier looked up and listened for a second before alarm crossed his wry features.

"Oh my GOD!" he exclaimed swinging his shoes off the counter to land with a loud clomp on the floor as he sprang to his feet.

"What's wrong?!" the truck driver exclaimed looking about.

"It's the coffee!" the cashier yelled, dashing almost head first into a back room.

"Make sure it's strong enough da stand without a cup!" the driver yelled as he kept his eyes on the T.V. "I gat three more stops da make before two AM!"

Max lifted his palm from the horn and kept his foot jammed on the gas pedal. The smoke from the rear tires billowed darker and thicker as the acrid stench of burnt rubber became over whelming even inside their vehicle with the windows up.

"Ninety-Nine!" Max yelled. "Hold the wheel!"

Once 99's brown cotton gloved left hand gripped the steering wheel, Max reached into his sports jacket and drew his 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police from it's shoulder holster and swung out the cylinder checking to see that it was fully loaded while he explained.

"I have an idea!—You hold the car steady and I'll shoot out the van's tires!"

In the cab of the black Metro van, keeping the steering wheel steady as he kept it charging down the road with the Sunbeam held captive against it's battering ram and on it's prongs, Nighthawk 2 pulled open the driver's side sliding door. Then reaching down to the floor of the van's cab, next to his seat, his left black leather gloved hand came up with a Walther MPL sub-machine gun with it's thin steel tube side-folding buttstock closed. The KAOS agent reached out the door with the weapon, bending his arm at the elbow to bring it to bear at the Sunbeam's windshield.

Max inched the Sunbeam's door open and the Walther MPL blazed and droned, raining 9mm Parabellum shells against the left end of the Sunbeam's windshield spreading white scratches over it and drumming on the Kevlar soft roof of the convertible.

It sent Max jerking back and yanking the door shut before raising a finger to announce.

"I have ANOTHER idea."

Having cut off his quarry's escape, Nighthawk 2 cackled maniacally nearly matching the continual roar of the Walther MPL as he kept blazing wildly, strafing the windshield and the roof sending sparks raining off and keeping the CONTROL agents cowering inside.

"Oh Max!" 99 realized looking backwards again. "This is it!"

The distance closed to less than a hundred feet and as the tanker truck expanded beyond the width of their rear windshield, 9mm Parabellums from the Walther MPL continued chewing away at their bullet proof windshield and roof.

The gray Metro van charged onto another junction and swerved onto the left arm so fast its right side wheels temporarily lifted off the road. But the sound of it's engine was nearly drowned out by the blaring of several sirens as 5 MPDC squad cars now surged after it, executing the same left turn, each one swerving sharply.

"…to despatch!—" the officer in the lead car barked into the microphone. "—Suspect vehicle now travelling east on Leonard and second!"

Nighthawk 2 continued cackling with bloodthirsty glee, his boot keeping the accelerator on the floor keeping the black Metro van's battering ram fused to the Sunbeam's front bumper as it kept pushing the smaller vehicle back down the road. Despite his grip on the steering wheel, the KAOS agent managed to lock a new magazine into the MP before cocking the bolt, just as the beady eyed agent tried again to open the door to bring his revolver to bare. Reaching out the door again, Nighthawk 2 squeezed the trigger and the MP sent a stream of ballistic deterrent hammering against the windshield, turning it nearly completely white at that end with scratches and making the agent duck back in, foiled again.

"Now that we're CERTAIN that's not gonna work—" Max declared before reaching for the armaments panel and jabbing the button labelled "Anti-Hand Grenade Mechanism".

99 stared at it for a moment before asking.

"Do you think?"

"If we're nice about it!" Max shrugged.

At the centre of the Sunbeam's hood, right behind the cannon, another, longer vertical rectangular panel wider than the one for the cannon slides apart and the silvery anthropomorphic, five fingered robotic arm unfolds from it's storage, its circular rotor-hub like elbow joint pointed forward and palm facing up.

Staring at the unfolding mechanical arm, Nighthawk 2 sat up straight in his driver's seat swearing.

"What zhis town coming to?!"

The mechanical arm's rotors whined as it swivelled about, it's hand aimed at the battering ram, mashed against the Sunbeam's front bumper before it moved to 'look' at the cannon in front of it and then swivelling around it faced it's palm backwards at the stationery tank truck that they were being hurtled towards.

99's eyes widened as the mechanical hand made a fist and shook it at the windshield at Max before pointing at the cannon furiously.

Max rolled his eyes and yelled.

"THAT'S what you're ANGRY ABOUT?! We're about da go ass FIRST into a gasoline truck set on WELL DONE and you're angry bout the CANNON taking up your space?!"

99 stared incredulously as the arm shook it's fist again at Max and kept pointing at the cannon.

"What about all the extra time I spent applying extra WD-40 to your joints?!" Max declared at the windshield as he gesticulated at the mechanical arm. "TWO bottles! You know how long that took?! You should know, you were there! THREE hours! I'm a very busy Secret Agent you know! I have secret documents and formulas to recover, scientists to rescue….WHAT?!"

99 looked on in awe as they continued hurtling backwards towards the gasoline truck and the mechanical arm put up 3 fingers.

"THREE?!" Max exclaimed, eyes wide. "You want THREE cans of WD-40?! You know how much they cost?! Professor Windish has cut me off already!"

The mechanical hand again put up 3 fingers and pointed at the cannon.

"You want THREE cans of WD-40 AND the cannon removed?!" Max hollered through the windshield. "You're an ARM and a HAND not an entire ROBOT! How much space do you NEED?!—" Max whirled to 99. "—I SWEAR Ninety-Nine, if I EVER get so chummy with a machine again, please just SHOOT me! I've had KAOS agents I put in jail for TWENTY years express more gratitude and they were trying to KILL me!"

"Max PLEASE!" 99 pleaded gesturing with her gloved hands behind them. "We're running out of TIME!"

"Alright! Alright!" Max swore throwing up his hands and yelled at the windshield again. "THREE bottles of WD-40, TWICE a week AND—the cannon STAYS! You JUST gadda make friends!"

At that, the shiny mechanical hand gave an A-OK sign with it's fingers.

"Ninety-Nine," Max asked wearily as the lights from the gas station behind them lit up the inside of the Sunbeam. "Would you mind sparing a few hours or—an entire WEEKEND and polish im for me? I have a date you see…"

99's blue eyes narrowed at Max with an intensity that would burn through his beady eyes.

The mechanical arm extended it's telescopic struts making up it's humerus and forearm and lunged at the up at the windshield of the black Metro van.

"Arrrrrrgggghhhh!" Nighhawk 2 hollered as the mechanical fist punched right through the driver's side pane of the van's split windshield like it was made of tissue paper, showering the KAOS agent with glass.

Nighthawk 2 pressed himself back into his seat to stay clear of the mechanical invader. The anti-hand grenade mechanism reached through the hole in the windshield and down to the steering column. Before Nighthawk 2 could react, the mechanical forefinger and thumb pinched the ignition key and turned it in the opposite direction.

Instantaneously, the entire Metro van cut into absolute silence as the roar of it's engine stopped and it's momentum plunged almost to zero.

Nighthawk 2 roared in fury as the mechanical hand yanked out the key and pulled itself back out the hole in the windshield with it and tossed the key away.

Max jammed on the brakes with a nerve wrenching scream from the rear tires and both vehicles finally slowed to a stop with the Sunbeam's bumper and quarter panel sliding out onto the major arm of the T junction.

The driver's side pane of the Metro van's split windshield exploded outwards under the assault of the Walther MPL, raining glass onto the Sunbeam's hood and windshield.

"Idi k chertu you glupyy, mekhanicheskiy slaboumnyy!" hollered Nighthawk 2 over the continuous roar of the sub-machine gun while it's blazing muzzle threw flashes off the mirror lenses of his round framed glasses.

The mechanical hand shook as sparks burst and fountained off it's titanium-tungsten alloy construction for a few seconds before it lunged forward again through the shattered half of the van's windshield and grabbed the blazing Walther MPL, snatching it out of Nighthawk 2's gloved hands.

As Nighthawk 2's hidden eyes popped behind his mirrored lenses, the mechanical hand squeezed, producing a high pitched squeal of warping of steel as the stock and barrel of the weapon caved inwards and bent inside the mechanical fist. The barrel and stock ended up twisted upwards slightly before the mechanical hand tossed it aside.

"KAOS can KEEP it's six week convalescent lif!" Declared Nighthawk 2 as he lunged for the open door of the cab.

However, the mechanical hand grabbed hold of his jacket collar and dragged him yelling and kicking out the shattered windshield.

As Max and 99 gaped at the sight, the mechanical hand tossed Nighthawk 2 in mid-air for a second and as he fell back down, caught him by his outspread hand and palm at the small of his back.

"Put me DOWN you klazy masheeen!" Nighthawk 2 yelled with his shoes pointing up to the black sky and his arms stretched out to the side.

Then as Max and 99 continued to gape in bewilderment, the mechanical hand began rotating at the wrist without any limitation, spinning like a propeller and in turn sent Nighthawk 2 on it spinning as well like a mad, human top.

"Aiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" went Nighthawk 2 as he spun so fast, viewed from below, he appeared as a black disk with an outer ring of white from his platinum blond halo of hair.

Finally, the mechanical hand heaved again, tossing the spinning KAOS agent into the air. Max and 99 ducked, afraid he would land on the soft roof of the convertible but luckily Nighthawk 2 arced over it to slam down on the truck, shaking the Sunbeam before rolling off.

Nighthawk 2 struck the asphalt with a loud slap and continued rolling nearly 5 feet before coming to a stop on his belly.

"Okay great job!" Max praised. "Now help get us loose!"

The mechanical hand's rotors whined softly as it gave a thumbs up and next reached forward to grasp the battering ram of the van and pushed down on it. Max and 99 grabbed for support as the Sunbeam's fender tilted further upwards freeing the chasis from the prong's underneath with a long scrap of metal. The mechanical hand then pushed at the battering ram and the Metro van rolled backwards a few feet till it's prongs were out of reach of the Sunbeam before lowering the car's front wheels back to the asphalt.

Swiveling back to the black Metro van, the mechanical hand now reached into the cabin again through the demolished windshield, took hold of the steering wheel and yanked. The entire steering wheel tore free of the steering column with an explosion of bolts and metal joints while hydraulic cables trailed after it before snapping as the reached their limit. With a careless flick of it's wrist, the mechanical hand sent the steering wheel frisbeeing through the air and disappearing into the dark beyond the rows of buildings on the right.

"That's my boy!" Max yelled as he seized the steering wheel and applied the gas.

"Good work hand!" 99 cheered, clapping her gloved hands as the Sunbeam backed up before speeding off, veering round the Metro van as the mechanical hand gave the A-OK sign again before retracting itself back into it's storage.

As the Sunbeam surged down the road towards the turn which their quarry had taken, sirens wailed through the air as 3 MPDC squad cars arrived, rotating beacons flashing on their roofs. As Nighthawk 2 groaned, they pulled to a stop on either side of him, uniformed police jumping out.

"Alright pal! On our feet!" one of the cops ordered as 2 of his colleagues dragged Nighthawk 2 upright. "You're under arrest for disturbing the peace with a mechanical limbed vehicle!"

"Wait minute!" Nighthawk 2 protested as handcuffs were slapped around his wrists.

As they dragged him to one of the squad cars, the KAOS agent kept protesting.

"It not my fault! I just killing stupik CONTROL agents, minding own biznezz and klazy metal hand ARTUCK ME! It self-defense!"

"Yeah! Yeah!" the lead cop tossed a careless hand as he headed back to his car. "You think we never heard that one before?!"

Max wrenched the steering wheel to the right, executing the turn smoothly. As the Sunbeam plunged down the dark arm of what they realized was a Y junction, their hopes soon fell.

"They're gone Ninety-Nine!" Max declared looking left and right for side roads.

"They couldn't fit into any of these alleys." 99 thought.

The Sunbeam in no time reached the end of the road they were on and pulled to a stop at the junction they arrived at.

Max threw up his hands before slamming them back onto the wheel, declaring.

"That's it! Long gone!"

"Max. Try the radio." 99 suggested pointing at the dashboard.

Max screwed up his face as though he was given a silly suggestion by a 5 year old child.

"Ninety-Nine! This is no time for music!"

"No Max! Your onboard multi-wave transceiver!" 99 exclaimed pointing feverishly at the device. "If you can scan the police band, maybe the M-P-D-C might have caught them or are still in pursuit!"

"Good thinking Ninety-Nine."

Flicking on the device on the dashboard, Max slowly rotated the tuning knob. A few seconds of multi-toned shrills emitted from the device interspersed with static before they found the right frequency.

"… _all units all units, repeat. Suspect vehicle from four-fifty-nine at National Museum now westbound on Friedman and Burns. Repeat, suspect vehicle from four-fifty-nine at National Museum now westbound on Friedman and Burns. All units respond_ …."

99's face lit up as Max stamped on the clutch and accelerator to send the Sunbeam surging forward and twisting into a sharp turn down the right arm of the junction.

"Friedman and Burns is pretty far Max!" 99 worried.

"Don't worry Ninety-Nine!" Max declared confidently. "I happen to know that part of town inside OUT! I know a couple short cuts that'll get us there in a minutes!"

"How do you know that area so well Max?" 99 inquired looking intently through the white scratches covered windshield for the route that 86 would take.

"They have the best bur…" Max stopped short as 99's face whipped back to face him, her blue eyes wide.

"…ni-shing…" Max recovered in a way he thought was smooth before grinning stupidly. "…Yes! Burnishing! They got the best burnishing shops there and you…you know how I like my copper utensils…uh…shiny!"

99's eyelids narrowed as she turned to face the windshield again though her blue pupils continued to blaze sideways at Max who suddenly hooked a finger into his collar to try to loosen it around his neck.

The gray Metro van blazed down Friedman and Burns with several MPDC squad cars closing in on it. As the van roared towards another junction, a police car sped out onto the road about 100 yards ahead from a side street from the right, blocking it's path. Instantly, the Metro van swerved to the left, it's wheels dragging sideways for a few yards before it managed to move forward again, now down a side street on the left. The squad cars roared in pursuing it relentlessly.

The Sunbeam's engine purred smoothly as it darted through street after street, negotiating turns and junctions sharply.

"… _CR-83 to all units! Suspect vehicle now southbound on Burns and third! Initiate road blocks at all intersections from 3_ _rd_ _to Belkin! Repeat, initiate road blocks…"_

"That's it! I know how we can cut em off!" Max declared slamming the gearshift.

99 braced her gloved hand on the dashboard as 86 put the Sunbeam Tiger through a series of turns through various side streets that left her hair swept over her face and eyes. It took her a second to pull them aside enough to see that they were now shooting down an alley flanked on both sides by high buildings. As brick walls flashed by on either side, the end of the alley grew in the windscreen. They could see cars cruising by casually in the intersecting road.

"This is it Ninety-Nine!" Max announced. "They should be heading down that road in about TEN minutes!"

Sirens slashed through the air and with about 20 yards separating them from the end of the alley, the Metro van flashed by in blur of gray.

"Would you believe—" Max quantified. "—a very—SHORT ten minutes."

"Max quick! Here's our chance!" 99 urged, bouncing slightly in her seat.

Max stamped the accelerator and the Sunbeam blasted out from the alley onto the road sending the oncoming squad cars screeching, horn blaring and swerving about to avoid him.

The Sunbeam arced across the road before managing to align itself correctly and blast forward. They could see the gray Metro van's rear bumper less than a hundred yards ahead.

Max poured power into the engine and the Sunbeam sliced away the gap, veering past various vehicles easily, closing in on it's target without interference finally. The flashing of red and blue beacons on the squad car roofs lit up the rearview and side mirrors of the Sunbeam as the Metro van grew larger and larger in their windshield.

"And-here-we-GO!" Max announced as his finger stabbed the fire button.

The cannon muzzle spoke it's singular word of white smoke coupled with a deep boom. The rear bumper of the gray Metro van erupted in a ball of fire as it disintegrated, the remnants of the rear doors were ripped free from the blast and sent flying to either side of the road trailing an arc of smoke and fire with it. The rear tires, swathed in flames followed the same directions as the doors and the flaming lower edge of what remained of the Metro van's rear bumper smashed down onto the asphalt sending forth a fountain of sparks as the front tires continued dragging them along.

Flaming fragments from the fender and rear doors struck the hood and windshield of the Sunbeam with bursts of sparks and fire before being extinguished by the speed and wind. Smoke belched out from the van's rear nearly cutting off Max's view.

Fortunately, the sparks flying from the dragging rear of the Metro van ceased rapidly as the vehicle veered off the road and finally slammed over the curb and came to a halt. Max pulled the Sunbeam to a smooth stop at the curb just a few feet from the smoking van.

"I'll get the back Ninety-Nine! You get the driver!" Max stated as they jumped out of the Tiger.

"Right Max!"

99 with her over-under double barrel Derringer in her gloved hand, ran towards the driver's side of the van's cab while Max, his Colt Official Police's 5 inch barrel leading the way approached the smoking rear of the van's box which rested at a downward angle on the road, minus it's rear tires.

99 took hold of the sliding door's handle and pulled it aside, aiming her Derringer inside. Immediately, her blue eye narrowed and she almost did not register the arrival of the MPDC squad cars, their sirens giving a final wail before stopping as the vehicles pulled to a stop around them, cordoning off the damaged vehicle.

99 lowered her weapon for there was no one inside the van's cab. Instead, she confronted a myriad of multi-colored wires trailing from the steering column just beneath the steering wheel going down to the floor. Leaning in and gazing up, 99 saw mounted to the ceiling of the cab, where a rearview mirror usually was in a car, some form of metal bracket, bolted in place holding a rectangular black box with a circular lens pointing forward out the windshield. She realized it was some form of closed-circuit camera and this too had wires trailing from the rear of the box dangling down to the driver's seat and continuing to the floor. Crouching, 99 examined the floor of the cab as she heard Max shouting.

"Government agents! Government agents! Our Chief was in contact with Inspector Clayton!—Would ya mind—taking the shotgun OUT of there—I need my nostrils to BREATHE!"

99's blue eyes followed the trailing wires from steering column and closed-circuit camera all the way down to some form of larger, silvery paneled box, bolted to the floor of the cab which blinked and flashed with various indicator lights and covered with rows of switches and dials. All the wires connected to ports in the side of the box along with various wires that trailed from the brakes, clutch, accelerator and the gear shift. Even as she took all this in, the flashing lights on the box suddenly blinked out.

She sprang to her feet and hurried towards the rear of the van where several police officers were now milling around while others redirected traffic around the disturbance. Max was just coming around to the side to meet her, his revolver holstered.

"There's no one in the back Ninety-Nine. What about the driver?"

99 shook her head in alarm sending dark brown hair flying.

"Max! We've been tricked! The van is rigged with some kind of remote control mechanism!"

Max hooked his thumbs into his vest pockets as he pulled his lips in and sneered.

"The ol-remote-control-van trick!"

"Agents! Over here!" came a voice from the inside of the van.

Hurrying to the back, Max and 99 bent slightly to look inside the van's box body. There were 2 police officers inside, standing on the slanting floor. One of them crouched and pulled at something on the floor. 99 gasped as a large rectangular section of the floor seemed to follow the police officer's hand up and they found themselves looking through a corresponding hole in the floor right down to the asphalt beneath the vehicle.

"It's a trap door Max!" 99 breathed out, her eyes closing tiredly. "They must have slipped out at some point when they were out of everyone's line of sight! Probably into a manhole!"

At that moment, a loud ringing sounded causing every police officer to frown as they looked around them for they were outside with not a phone booth in sight.

"Your shoe's ringing." One of the police officers pointed

"It must be the Chief, Max." 99 pointed out. "He'll want an update."

"Yes." Max said lifting his right foot up to remove his shoe. "Funny thing bout' updates Ninety-Nine.—" 86 continued as he twisted the heel to release the lock and pulled off the outsole. "—You can't just go blabbering every single detail! It takes YEARS of training as a Secret Agent like me to be able to cut THROUGH the mundane, unimportant, insignificant, time-wasting details, to get RIGHT to the point!"

"Which details are those Max?"

With absolute confidence and a tight smug, lopsided smile as he flipped out the round microphone over the rotary dial of the shoe phone, Max revealed.

"The details after—"Max, the back of the museum. Why don't we check out the back entrance and see what we can find?""

With that, Max happily put the round receiver of the shoe phone to his ear as 99 lets out an exhausted breath, leaned her head back and rolled her eyes to the side.

Somewhere else in the city in a deserted back street behind a row of abandoned factories, Gerd stood next to a turquoise LeSabre Custom Sedan parked at the curb behind a brown Volkswagen Type 1. He was now dressed in a white turtle neck and black pants topped by a denim windbreaker. In his hands he held a flat box about the size of a large humidor with a long antenna pointing upwards from one corner. Rows of buttons and switches covered the face of the box along with what looked like a miniature steering wheel a various large buttons next to it labelled "Clutch", "Brake" and "Accelerator". Indicator lights flashing in sequence above the controls now stopped.

"Zer van eez disabled!" he announced as he collapsed the antenna.

Walking round the back of the LeSabre, he tossed the remote control into the open trunk where it landed among his folded anti-chemical suit and GP-5 Gas mask. Slamming the trunk shut, Gerd almost walked to the driver's side before he remembered something and walked back a few feet along the curb to a manhole. The cover laid to one side of the hole and with his shoe, Gerd slid the heavy disc with a grinding of iron on asphalt, back into place over the opening. As he returned to the LeSabre, another trunk could be heard shutting.

Behind the Type 1, Kerstin now changed into a sleeveless, short-sleeved magenta turtle neck dress walked around the trunk, her kitten heeled white shoes clopping sharply on the road she headed to the driver's side of the car.

At the same time, SS-19 now decked out in a maroon bishop sleeved, shirtdress, black stockings and a matching draped turban from which her black veil flowed down, shrouding her face entirely, walked from the back of the Type 1 towards the fender of the LeSabre. In one black leather gloved hand she held her black clutch while the other stabilised the strap of the large back pack.

No sooner had she reached the LeSabre, then a third vehicle glided down the road to join them, larger and more powerful yet silent aside from the traction of it's large tires on the grimy asphalt. With a barely perceptible screech of it's brakes, the black Rolls-Royce Phantom V came to a stop next to the LeSabre.

Without breaking her stride, SS-19 walked towards the left quarter panel of the luxury vehicle as the driver side door opened and the chauffeur stepped out. He walked to the rear left door and opened it just as the lady arrived.

"Danke, Udo." SS-19 spoke, without out a flutter of her veil.

The distinctive cheek bones and jawline of the emerald eyed Udo was equally unresponsive as he nodded stiffly in acknowledgement of the thanks as SS-19 eased herself into the interior of the vehicle. Closing the door, Udo turned on the heels of his jackboots as smartly as a soldier marching in a parade and walked back to the door.

As the Phantom V moved off as silently as it had arrived, only then did Kerstin and Gerd who had been standing by their vehicles, get in and started up their engines.

Inside the Rolls Royce, the varnished wood panels and seals coupled with the finest automobile engineering siphoned out nearly the last trace of traffic noise. As the Phantom V cruised through the streets as smoothly as a Learjet in air-pocket clear skies, SS-19 pulled the backpack on her lap clear while holding onto it's content.

Pushing the empty pack into a corner of the fine black leather seat, SS-19 opened the black box that was left on her lap to reveal their prize within, resting safely within the velvet interior lining of the box.

Her leather gloved hands cradled the Palermo Shearwater carefully as she lifted it out of the box and handed it off to another pair of awaiting black gloved hands at her side.

"Exquisit!" Von Graf breathed out as he held the statuette in his hand while the feather shaped rubies and diamonds on it's wings reflected with flashes of brilliance in his monocle.

As his gloved fingers tilted it, the life like head of the shearwater moved causing the emeralds in it's eyes to shine green despite the dim interior of the Rolls-Royce.

"It's eyes are almost more brilliant zhan Udo's." SS-19 remarked through her unmoving black veil as she gazed towards the driver.

The Oberführer chortled happily causing the leather of his black SS tunic to creak and the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords to shake slightly at his collar, as he continued beholding their prize while Udo in the driver's seat turned his head slightly and gave a curt nod as his only acknowledgement of the compliment.

"Thanks to unscrupulous, cruel, selfish, rotten, heartless, scheming art collektors und zheir kind, pure generosity, zhis vill fetch a great price for KAOS." Von Graf grinned handing the Palermo Shearwater back into SS-19's gloved finger tips.

As SS-19 placed the statuette back into it's velvet lined safety and shut the box, the Oberführer squeezed a gloved fist in the air so tightly that the leather creaked and his tendons clicked as he shook it.

"Vell DONE Nineteen! Vell DONE! Zer financial reapings of zhis bounty PALES in comparison to your flawless die Magnifizenz! Your tactical genius und strategic precautions for tonight's operations were perfect! Und—" Von Graf paused to punctuate his emphasis with a raised gloved finger before continuing. "—zhat is due to only an insiknifikant contribution on my part! I mean zhis Nineteen!"

SS-19 bowed her head slightly, allowing the bottom edges of her veil to rustle against the fabric of her shirt dress.

"Vielen Dank, Oberführer. Az alvays, you are most kind." Came her breathless reply. "However, owver success tonight is overshadowed vy great cost. Owver profits effectively cut in half vith the loss of all zer uzzer artefacts from zer museum. Und also, owver entire robbery unit captured or dead."

The Oberführer pouted angrily as he nodded in agreement, taking a deep breath which swelled his chest and stomach making the leather of his tunic creak again to their limit.

"Ja. Ja. Und all because of Maxvell SHMART! Zhat ungeschickt dummkopf!" Von Graf's gloved fist slammed down on the door handle with a resounding thump that nearly rattled the wood panel interior.

Calming himself almost instantaneously von Graf turned to SS-19 focusing his gaze on her, his monocle turning black as it reflected her veil. "You ver vise not to confront Shmart tonight vith so much at stake. He haz a habit of BUMBLING his vay eento victory und success against all odds!"

SS-19 acknowledged with a nod as she added.

"Oberführer. Zhere are too many unknown variables. Even zhough zer captured men have no knowledge of zer next target, eet vould be vise to postpone zer final operation."

"Nein! Nein! Nein!" Von Graf shook his head and his baton as well in his right hand causing the endcap to transform momentarily into a streak of silver. "Mister Big vill never accept zhat! Everzing ees een place und time ees of zer essence."

"Jawohl." SS-19 nodded. "However, een order to proceed, owver losses must be replenished und zer new men prepared for zer operation."

"I shall see to zheir replacements." Von Graf assured with a shake of the baton end-cap. "Vut eet eez up to you, Kerstin und Vollmar to get zhem veady. Und now—Udo! Home! I've vecorded Dean Martin und zheir are bottles of Eisbock lager vaiting in zer fridge for us!"


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

"Yes!...We…Yes Mister President!.." the Chief nodded as he held the bull's horn with the trailing phone cord to his ear.

The Chief stood again at the secret wall with the twin cabinets, trophies and the rifles and pistol mounted on it. He remained bent over as he held the detached horn to his ear and spoke to the bull's snout.

"…Well, Mister President…" the Chief stammered gesturing with one hand. "…I…I wouldn't exactly call last night a TOTAL loss. I mean…we…yes, yes sir, I understand…"

As the Chief continued speaking to the bull, the sliding door to his office opened and in walked Max looking as fresh as his newly pressed Davy's gray single breasted suit over a matching double-breasted vest, white shirt and black tie with stripes of maroon and crimson.

As he strides over to the Chief, full of self-important purpose, following him in perfect calm and graceful contrast was 99, dressed just as soothingly in a pink long sleeved t-shirt that hugged her slender form and settling with it's hem at her hips over a knee length black skirt while a yellow kerchief with splashes of red around her neck leaving a triangular section on her chest, completed her ensemble.

Max stopped in front of the Chief while 99 stopped right behind him, both waiting for their superior to finish his conversation with their Commander-In-Chief.

"…as a matter of fact my agents have JUST arrived Mister President!" the Chief declared obviously it would enable him to end the call prematurely. "We…"

"Chief! Chief!" Max said eagerly pointing at the bull's head. "Tell…tell im I did a great job last night!"

The Chief's response was a scowl at 86 as he kept the horn held to his ear and speaking with a restrained tone to the bull.

"I assure you Mister President you can count on CONTROL to stop KAOS before they strike again!"

"Tell im…tell im I was the one who got us into the museum right under KAOS' nose!" Max insisted, pointing feverishly at the bull's head prompting the Chief to slap a hand in the air in his direction to shut him up.

"…Yes Mister President…Yes Mister President, I…"

"Tell im I handled the ENTIRE situation last night from start to end and brought the ENTIRE robbery to a standstill AND chased down ALL the KAOS vans and stopped them all on my own!" Max insisted, nodding excitedly like a hungry woodpecker hammering at a tree while pointing at his own chest.

"…Yes Mister President, I understand the administration's agenda was already stymied because of the Harlem and Watts riots…AND last night's widespread urban destruction right here in the capital doesn't help."

Max straightened, shrugging and pouting as he spoke while jerking a thumb over his shoulder at 99.

"Tell im I was just the driver and everything went wrong after Ninety-Nine suggested we go behind the museum."

99's jaw dropped as she stared at the back of 86's head.

"Maaaax!"

Max twisted to grimace at her as he declared.

"There is no NINE in TEAM Ninety-Nine, so do your part!"

"Yes Mister President! My agents and I will go over every single piece of evidence and we won't REST till we've recovered the Palermo Shearwater along with EVERY item that KAOS has stolen and put the masterminds behind this in jail! I promise...hello? Mister President?"

Max and 99 watched with dread as the Chief seem to deflate like a balloon with a hundred holes as he lowered the horn and stuck it into the side of the bull's head. It of course did not catch and the Chief rammed it in again and this time when he released it, the horn stuck at a downward pointing angle.

Sighing, the Chief slapped the air in defeat and walked back to his desk, followed by his agents with Max putting a cigarette to his lips from his cigarette case.

"Max, Ninety-Nine.." the Chief shook his head wearily as he flicked the switch on intercom control box on his desk to move the bookcase back in place over the secret section of the wall. "…this is it. After last night, the president is on the verge of shutting down CONTROL or at the very least…" the Chief paused as he sank into his chair and turned his palms to the ceiling in dismay. "…replacing me."

"That's terrible Chief!" 99 gasped as she lifted her right thigh to sit down on the edge of the desk on the Chief's right while Max declared, gesturing with his cigarette between his fingers.

"It's shocking! Absolutely SHOCKING! I mean after all your years of hard work and dedication, risking your life at every turn for this nation! They're gonna just toss you out after one teeny-weeny incident of city wide destruction?!"

The Chief nodded, his eye brows drooping at a loss as 99 put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Outrageous! Des—PIcable!" Max declared punctuating each word with a nod as he held his cigarette in between his fingers in his right hand while keeping his left thumb hooked in his vest pocket "Why those low-down, pencil pushing, DESK jockeys wanna tell YOU how da do your job! You! A man with decades of experience in counter-espionage and field work, protecting this great country of ours!"

"Thank you Max." the Chief gave a weak smile.

"Just tell me one thing Chief."

"Yes Max?"

Max leaned forward, gesturing with his cigarette as he asked.

"When they kick you out, would you recommend me da take your place?"

"Max!" 99 exclaimed, her sharp chin dropping in shock as the Chief closed his eyes and massaged the bridge of his nose.

"How bout just your apartment?"

The Chief looked up and put up his hands to signal for order while Max lights his cigarette and tosses the match aside.

"Let's just put aside my imminent place on the unemployment line and focus on stopping KAOS."

"Chief, I don't understand why the president is upset?!" Max pointed out as smoke streamed out from his nostrils as his thumb remained hooked to his vest pocket and facing his free palm up with the lit cigarette held between the index and middle fingers. "I mean, we stopped the KAOS robbery unit AND saved all the museum's paintings, including the entire Dutch, Burlington and Italian collection!"

As 99 nodded in agreement, the Chief tilted his head and spread his hands with a heavy sigh.

"Yes, I know. As far as I'm concerned you both did a tremendous job last night. But unfortunately, your success IS outweighed by the failures which the president AND the city is focused on!"

"But Chief, we were sorely outnumbered! They can't blame you for that!" Max declared.

"Well, I WAS duped into taking practically every agent we had thousands of miles away to Kansas and leaving D.C unprotected."

"Okay that IS all on you." Max nodded vigorously with a flick of his cigarette holding hand. "I mean—sitting thousands of miles away with every agent we had while the museum was robbed right under your nose—well, that was stupid!"

"THANK-YOU-Max!" The Chief scowled through gritted teeth before leaning forward to put his arms on the table and continued, gesturing with the tips of his fingers of one hand inches from their opposite number on the other, as though he could physically hold the problem. "This is SERIOUS! KAOS has the Palermo Shearwater which is worth almost more than all the other artefacts in the museum combined! The Italian Prime Minister was on the phone with the president till four in the morning about the loss of one of their nation's greatest treasures which was entrusted to our care!"

"Pffft!" Max scoffed rolling his eyes to the ceiling. "THAT'S gratitude for ya! Without our Marshal Plan, most honest Italians wouldn't be able da enjoy a cold beer in the comfort of their home! Why, they'd hafta trek all the way down to the nearest PUB just da watch the game on a TV! AND, the average Italian family would still be doing laundry by hand!"

"That's not the POINT Max!" the Chief growled but immediately, his expression softened and his eyebrows drooped as he shrugged admitting. "Though the president DOES like Italian Trotters and Heavy Drafts.—" Shaking his head and hands vigorously to get himself back on track, the Chief went on. "—It's not just Italy! The President of the Board of Commissioners and the Chief of Police are in the Oval Office right now raising HELL about the chaos in the city last night! The Chief of Police blames us for crippling nearly HALF his fleet of police cars!"

"That's ri-diculous! Half his fleet!" Max scoffed indignantly before he lifted his cigarette and tilted his head reassessing. "Three Tenths!—One Third, maybe.—" Straightening his head and jabbing the glowing cigarette in the Chief's direction, Max finished. "—Two—Fifth, TOPS!"

"That's not the worst of it!" The Chief continued throwing his hands at Max. "Over forty police officers are in the hospital from the high speed vehicular chase across the city! And a DOZEN officers at the museum were killed! Including Inspector Clayton and his partner Sergeant Krantz who was seven months from finishing his career with honours!"

"That's horrible Chief!" 99 breathed

"Well, it certainly argues well for early-retirement." Max shrugged and grimaced knowingly.

"Max! This isn't funny!" The Chief shook his hands with palms facing upwards. "On top of the loss of life, the president is threatening to pay for the MPDC's hospital bills and funeral expenses as well as any damage they and the city sustained, from CONTROL's budget! Our commander-in-chief is demanding to know why the District of Columbia's finest are getting hurt doing OUR job!"

"Well OBVIOUSLY—" Max answered with a pout and gesture of his cigarette. "—the job they did last night—wasn't so fine!"

The Chief's hands closed into big trembling fists and his eyes popped as he neared a seizure. 99 hoping to prevent this and get things back on track asked.

"Chief. I believe we captured a number of KAOS agents alive last night. Did any of them give up any information that could help us?"

Her modulated tones as always brought down the Chief's blood pressure instantly and his fists stopped shaking and opened again into weary hands. With a deep breath, the Chief began again.

"Well Ninety-Nine, there were a total of sixteen KAOS agents involved in the museum heist last night. After running their pictures through our Automatic Comparison File, we confirmed we had records on ALL of them."

"I remember we captured at least eight of them alive. Knowing KAOS agents, most of them would'ev talked." Max declared taking another drag of his cigarette.

"Well ordinarily that would be the case." Was the Chief's disappointed reply.

"I don't understand Chief." 99's delicate eyebrow's knotted questioningly.

The Chief turned his head, casting a sidelong highly focused gaze at 86 and 99 as he answered, jabbing his finger on his desk top for emphasis. "It seems KAOS devoted a LOT of resources into this robbery unit. All the agents last night were among the TOP personnel in their organization, many of them, former members of the most brutal, highly disciplined and efficient intelligence and secret police organizations in the world! K-G-B, Á-V-H, Š-t-B like our friend Němec, Departamento de Operações de Informações - Centro de Operações de Defesa Interna, Stasi, just to name a few!—" The Chief tilted his head in disappointment as he continued. "As a result, many of them took their poisoned pills while in police custody before we could get a hold of them."

The Chief carried on with a look of sheer determination as he raised a finger for attention.

"However! We were in luck.—" he raised 2 fingers on his right hand. "—The TWO most cunning— manipulative—ruthless—cruel—iron-willed—devious KAOS agents from last night's gang, possessing razor keen, infallible and un-BREAKABLE survival instincts far surpassing all their comrades—chose to stay alive and cut a deal."

"Were they former Stasi, Chief?" Max asked. "K-G-B? Á-V-H?"

"Disc jockeys from Chicago and Detroit. Galbraith and Blair."

As Max's eyes popped at the revelation, 99 queried.

"Did they tell us anything useful?"

The Chief interlaced his fingers as he set his hands down on the desk while explaining.

"They confirmed a few things we suspected. First, the KAOS agent in charge of the robbery unit was the woman in the black veil, whom they all knew only as "S-S-Nineteen". None of them have ever seen her face. Vollmar and Kerstin are her lieutenants. AND—" the Chief raised a finger. "—as we suspected, S-S-Nineteen, reports directly to— KAOS' President of Espionage and Communications, Hendrik Streckenbach von Graf, also known as, the Oberführer—the agent who ran the KAOS secret short-wave station you both found a few months back. Blair and Galbraith confirmed, von Graf visited their bases of operations throughout all the robbery operations. We don't know if this S-S-Nineteen reports exclusively to him but they claimed the two of them seemed very familiar with each other."

"It's nice to know KAOS encourages office-romance." Max remarked with a tilt of his head and pout of his lower lip. "I mean, with the hours we espionage and counter-espionage agents WORK! It's hard to find the right evil and unrest fomenting agent to settle down and start a family with."

"ANY-way!" the Chief scowled at Max. "Blair and Galbraith also gave us their base of operations for the museum heist but it had since been abandoned. They confirmed it was the unit's MO for each job. They would clean out their base before they executed a robbery and S-S-Nineteen would only tell them the new base of operations to rendezvous at AFTER the mission was completed."

"So if any of them were caught, they couldn't give up the new base of operations." 99 realised.

"That's right!" the Chief nodded and raised a finger for emphasis. "AND—the most worrying part of all, they both confirmed that S-S-Nineteen has one FINAL target after the museum."

"Was Galbraith and Blair able to tell us what it was?" 99 asked.

"Unfortunately, no." the Chief shook his head as he continued with eyebrows knotted in concentration. "S-S-Nineteen was VERY cautious about security leaks. It's believed, no one in the unit knew what the final target was except for her lieutenants. But Blair and Galbraith both confirmed, that while planning and executing the other robberies, S-S-Nineteen concurrently sent some members of the robbery unit off on side missions. They believe, it involved preparations for their final target."

"Did they say what these missions were?" Max asked with cigarette fumes gushing out his lips and nostrils.

"Not really. S-S-Nineteen forbade the agents from discussing these missions with other people." Was the Chief's worried answer though he brightened slightly as he continued with narrowed focused eyes. "However, Blair told us S-S-Nineteen sent three of their agents off on one of these preparatory missions and upon their return a few days later, Galbraith overheard one of them complaining about how 'stupid Americans in _Colorado_ play in snow because they've never known Siberia!'."

"Colorado?" Max frowned and took a puff of his cigarette again.

"Correct." the Chief added as he pulled over 3 thick files from a stack on his desk each with the words "Top Secret – Very Classified and Confidential" on them in big red letters. "These are the three KAOS agents that S-S-Nineteen sent."

The Chief opened the files to reveal they were dossiers with a photograph attached to the inside of the covers. As he turned them around for his agents benefit, 99 pointed a slender finger immediately to the photographs in two of the files; one of a lanky, gaunt man with silvery hair, hollow cheeks and bulging eyes seen here dressed in some form of dark green mechanic's overalls and sitting on the hood of what appears to be some form of military jeep, smoking and talking to a few other similarly dressed men while the other was of a bald man with a halo of dark blond hair, also in some form of military service uniform and in the photograph was walking by some form of building.

"These are two of the KAOS drivers in the alley behind the museum." 99 identified

"And this fella." Max gestured with his cigarette hand at the other photograph of a broad chested man with neatly combed dark hair and a well maintained beard, seen here wrapped in a heavy coat over a suit and tie and walking up the snow covered steps of an unknown building as well. "He was…"

Max cut himself off as a large butt of ash dropped onto the bearded man's face. The Chief looked up slowly at 86 with a scowl that threatened to unleash an aneurysm.

"…sorry bout that Chief." Max pulled back his cigarette with a sheepish, lop-sided grin while the Chief growled, sweeping the ash away with his hand. "That…That's one of the guys inside the museum. Remember Ninety-Nine? Outside in the corridor, with the forty-one magnum."

As 99 nodded in agreement, the Chief pointed first to the bearded man, followed by the hollow cheeked individual, then the bald man with the dark blond halo explaining as he spoke.

"Ivan Kramarenko—Gregor Sutyagin—and Helmut Murr."

"Wait a minute Chief!" Max squinted incredulously with his hand on one hip and making a flicking gesture of his cigarette hand. "This doesn't make…"

"Arrrgghhh!" went the Chief jumping to his feet as ash from Max's cigarette landed on his balding head.

"Chief are you okay?!" 99 asked reaching out a hand as the Chief brushed frantically with his hands at his head.

"MAX!" the Chief hollered. "PUT that cigarette OUT!"

"Sorry bout that Chief." Max grimaced sheepishly again as he leaned forward and extinguished the offending item in the ash tray on the Chief's desk.

"I SWEAR—every day with you is costing me more HAIR!" the Chief exclaimed, gesticulating at Max with shaking hands.

"Have you tried a new conditioner?" Max suggested gesturing at his own shiny black glory. "Maybe a reconstructor with a good protein base…"

"Never-MIND!" the Chief scowled before sitting back down.

"Max, you were saying something about these KAOS agents?" 99 spoke, again hoping to save both men.

"Right." Max continued. "Chief, I don't get why S-S-Nineteen sent two Russians and a German to Colorado! I mean, they had Galbraith—and Blair! Plus, at least two other guys at the museum were Americans too! Wouldn't these three stand out?"

"That's what I thought at first." The Chief agreed. "Our files confirmed Sutyagin was a Starshiná or Sergeant Major, in the Soviet Army's highly decorated, Twenty-Third Guards Tamanskaya Motor Rifle Division up till 1962 when he joined KAOS. Murr was formerly a Fähnrich or Warrant Officer with the Land Forces of the National People's Army's motorized infantry. Both their expertise were in mechanical engineering and operations of heavy military vehicles—armoured personnel carriers and such. Not covert operations."

"That explains why they were the robbery unit's drivers." 99 shrugged her lean shoulders.

"That's right." The Chief agreed and now raised a finger again and pointed at the other picture. "But then, our files pointed out that, Kramarenko was formerly MAJOR Ivan Kramarenko of the KGB's First Main Directorate."

"The branch in-charge of foreign operations and intelligence." 99 said.

"Yes." The Chief nodded. "During his career, Major Kramarenko was a covert operative in many parts of the world including Britain, West Germany, Africa, Norway, Sweden AND here in the States. He was responsible for setting up hundreds of businesses worldwide which were KGB fronts for intelligence gathering."

"It's nice of the not-so-free world to respect free enterprise while spying on their enemies." Max nodded approvingly.

Scowling again at Max, the Chief continued

"The CIA's intelligence reports believed he also spearheaded at least twenty assassinations of Russian defectors in Britain, Sweden and here in the U.S. but they could never catch him. Our files lists him as a fluent speaker of SIX different languages. A man with his training and experience has no trouble adapting and blending into any country! S-S-Nineteen must have utilized this expertise for something."

"But Chief, how do we know what Blair and Galbraith said were true?" Max queried. "I mean, they could be telling us ANYTHING da get a break!"

"We managed to verify part of their story." The Chief explained. "CONTROL West agents reported spotting Kramarenko, Murr and Sutyagin in BOULDER, Colorado, two days after the diamond fair heist at the Cramley. We had no idea at the time they were involved in the robberies."

"Was CONTROL West able to find out what they were up to in Boulder?"99 enquired, leaning slightly with a hand pressed on the desk top.

"I'm afraid not." The Chief frowned. "We can't be sure if they knew they were being followed or simply took precautions but the three of them gave our agents the slip at Stapleton International. We did check the manifest of the flight they arrived on and they were travelling under the aliases, Frank Kozowski, Robert Donnellan and Dan Miller. CONTROL West checked all the hotels in Boulder but found no trace of them. But then, Kramarenko would be highly adept at staying undetected."

"So we're thinking this final job of theirs is in Colorado?" Max asked and as the Chief nodded in affirmation, followed up with. "What's in Colorado? Other than snow and mountains covered in them."

"Well," the Chief thought spreading his palms. "it could be anything. There are a number of banks including First Bank Holding, TCF, a branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas in Denver —a large number of museums including art galleries that might have some valuable pieces on exhibit at this time—and don't forget, Colorado would be an ideal staging ground for a heist of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas city just to the east. We can't rule that out just because S-S-Nineteen used it as a diversion. She might simply be trying to lull us into a false sense of security about it. It's simply too soon to tell and we don't have enough to go on. This was all Blair and Galbraith could tell us!"

Looking up decisively, the Chief continued, gesturing his hands as though he was executing the actions as he spoke.

"So, I've asked CONTROL West to maintain surveillance on KAOS agents in Colorado." With a shrug and frown of frustration, the Chief admitted. "Problem is we don't have every KAOS agent's photograph on file and worse, Blair and Galbraith confirmed the entire robbery unit was involved in the museum operation!"

"Did you tell the president he has me to thank for that?" Max enquired.

"I'll be sure to mention it the moment he SHUTS down CONTROL because we can't stop S-S-Nineteen and her plans and we're all out of a JOB!" the Chief hollered causing Max to shrink back with a sheepish pout. "The point BEING—with her entire unit wiped out other than her lieutenants, S-S-Nineteen would definitely have replaced them to carry out her final objective! So now, even if CONTROL West DOES spot any KAOS agents they recognize, we'll have no idea if he's part of S-S-Nineteen's unit! We HAVE to find out what Kramarenko, Murr and Sutyagin were doing in Colorado and discreetly so KAOS won't get wind of it. Which is why you two will take the next flight out to Boulder."

"Right Chief." Max nodded

"I'll be flying out to CONTROL West in Las Vegas myself and quarter backing this operation from there." The Chief added.

"Just one thing Chief." Max said as 99 slides off the desk to her feet. "Which airline are we travelling on to Boulder?"

The Chief and 99 frowned with the former asking.

"Does it matter?"

"Absolutely Chief." Max nodded gravely. "Cause we can't take Delta Air Lines."

"What's wrong with Delta Air Max?" 99 asked.

"We wanna be fresh and alert when we get to Boulder! The entire mission relies on our minds being kept well rested, suitably stimulated and CLEAR during the entire three da five hour flight in economy class!"

"How does flying Delta Air compromise that?!" the Chief puzzled to which Max answered simply, causing the Chief to bow his head, close his eyes and squeeze the bridge of his nose and 99 to sigh and roll her eyes sideways at Max with a lop-sided smile.

"I've seen all their in-flight movies and they haven't got The Treasure of the Sierra Madre or The Grapes of Wrath."


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

Nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Boulder, Colorado was a picture straight out of old Western movies with the heroic cowboys riding through rocky country with the snow covered mountains always at their backs.

Max didn't have a horse at the moment and the last time he was on one, a dissident Native American tribe was threatening to unleash their secret weapon upon the government if they weren't given back native lands in the United States. Which turned out was—all of the United States—so he was told. But of the missions he'd been on, Max couldn't complain too much since the secret weapon the Red Feathers was unleashing turned out to be a giant rocket-propelled arrow which did little damage though it was the second biggest arrow he had ever seen. And, he did have a chance to get up close to Red Cloud's most enthusiastic and attractive daughter. And up close was about to get a lot closer, even though White Cloud found out in the end that he wasn't her actual tuppawassi—that is, until 99 had shown up in the war council tent with revolvers in both hands.

Couldn't complain too much—but yes, he COULD complain still. Sitting at the window seat of one of the cafés in the Crossroads Mall, Max gazed out at the snow covered, tree lined sidewalks, roads, and low buildings that made up downtown Boulder. And while he had no horse and no White Cloud right now, there in the distance, beyond the buildings, was the snow covered Rocky Mountains, reminding him that he had no horse and no White Cloud.

Max was of course, more upset about the lack of White Cloud. Dressed in his clean pressed gray suit, red vest and matching tie, he looked at his watch again for the 10th time in 5 minutes. He had been waiting for ages. How long did it take to pick up information from an undercover agent?!

"Max! I've got it!"

Max rolled his eyes with relief as 99 hurried over from the entrance, snow sliding off her lavender trench coat and falling to the floor as though she was the sky. In her arms and gloved hands she clutched a green letter sized envelope.

"Finally!" Max scoffed throwing up his hands. "Ninety-Nine! It's almost eight-fifteen! I've been waiting for what feels like for-EVER!"

99 frowned as she placed her soft blue beret on the table and began undoing the twin columns of 4 buttons each on her trench coat.

"But Max, I was only gone twenty minutes."

Max frowned, pouting slightly as he reflected for a moment before arching his eyebrows and declaring.

"I said it FELT like forever—not that it WAS forever."

99 gave him a lopsided smile as she sank down into her seat opposite him, her slender, lean form clothed in a fluorescent blue, long sleeved, knee length dress with a pencil skirt with a built in baby blue belt. The round neckline and sleeve ends were adorned by a circle of baby blue lace with a Crayola blue ribbon sewn onto the neckline lace. The round neckline and lace highlighted the elegant poise of her neck and as she pulled off her white leather gloves, Max sniped again, jabbing at the table.

"If there was a gorgeous daughter of a Native American tribe's chief here with me, I bet you'd be back a LOT faster!"

"Max! You CAN'T still be angry about that!" 99 laughed in a modulated melody that caused goose bumps to jump to life under Max's sleeves which he pretended was due to the snow fall and mountain air.

"Do I look angry to you?!" Max demanded, his brows furrowed and his beady eyes squinting as he leaned forward over the table.

"Yes?"

Wagging his head from side to side, Max declared "Then one of us is WRONG aren't we?!"

99 turned her face slightly to cast a blue eyed sideways glance at Max as she began rummaging into the envelope.

"Coffee honey?" this from the middle aged, plump, cherubic waitress who trotted over with the pot in her hand, the black and gold name tag on her yellow uniform shirt dress reading "MABEL".

"Oh yes please!" 99 smiled.

"Best da stay loaded up on the hot beverages and off the alcohol." Mabel beamed as she filled 99's cup with the smoking dark liquid. "It's thirty-five degrees out there and it aint gonna get any warmer till May!"

"Couldn't agree more! Thank you." 99 breathed as she cradled the hot cup in her slender hands to bring it to her even, soft lips.

"What about you? Can I get you anything else?" Mabel directed at Max with a twinkle in her eye.

"Yes." Max griped as he gazed out the window at the white mountains, dotted with flecks of their true colour under the snow, before turning back to the waitress. "A place where I CAN'T see mountains—"

"Try closing your eyes and another state." Was Mabel's reply as she turned and walked off to another table.

"—or wise ass waitresses!" Max called at the waitress's heavy departing back.

"Max!" 99 scolded softly.

"Ninety-Nine, TELL me you got something!" Max whined slumping back in his seat. "It's been five days! Soon I'm gonna be counting mountains in my SLEEP! I thought you were just picking up the files from the CONTROL West agent?"

"Yes." 99 explained as she extracted a stack of documents from the envelope. "Unfortunately they were having their morning coffee break so I had to wait till she got back to work to meet up with her."

"Oh!" Max nodded understandingly now. "Ok I get that. I mean, you can goof off while you're working but while you're on a break? The Union'll rain all kinds of hell down on you."

99 laughed soundlessly as she sorted through the documents.

"But she came through Max! Took her a while but she managed to get me Kramarenko, Murr and Sutyagin's bills from their stay at the hotel.—Here are their…let's see…oh, the bills for their meals…"

"Oh yeah." Max noted as he shuffled from one bill to another reading from them. "Borscht…noodle soup…knockwurst…Beef Stroganoff…bratwurst…steak…more Beef Stroganoff…more knockwurst and bratwurst…cheese cake…more cheese cake…more…oh NO!"

"What is it Max?" 99 looked up from a bill she was reading at Max's eye popped expression as he stared at what he was reading.

"Oh my GOD!"

"What did you find Max?!" 99 exclaimed, her blue eyes widening in apprehension.

"We're in trouble Ninety-Nine!" Max declared scanning the bill. "Based on what I'm reading, KAOS already has sufficient funds to stay in business for the next THREE decades AND buy enough weapons of mass destruction to wipe out the free and not-so-free world!"

"How do you know that Max?" 99 asked, leaning forward to see what he was reading.

Max looked up finally and flipped the bill he was reading around for her to view it, declaring in a terror laced tone with his beady eyes as wide as they could go.

"Look-at-their-MINIBAR bill!"

99 pressed her firm lips together, breathing out slowly as she cast Max a sideways glance as he continued, flipping the bill back to himself to read.

"This is my salary for five—MONTHS!" Grumbling on a bit more as 99 drank her coffee, Max finally sighed. "Hooookay, Ninety-Nine! Let's get back to our hotel and we can look over these bills more closely. We're due to check in with the Chief anyway. Check please!"

As 99 nodded and began pulling on her lavender coat, Mabel again strolled over, her kitten heeled shoes clacking away at the tiles to present their bill.

Max shuffled dumped a few notes from his wallets on the table and stood up, pulling on his beige trench coat.

"Wait Max." 99 gestured at the notes as the waitress collected it. "You left out the tip."

Max scowled at Mabel who was counting the cash.

"It's my new policy for places with mountains. NO TIP for SMART ASSES!"

"Maaax." 99 said. "She's just…"

"That's okay dear. I am a smart ass. So no tip required from club members." Mabel smiled with a warm hand on 99's arm and turned to Max saying with a smile as beautiful as the Rocky Mountains "Or club "president"."

"There see?" Max beamed as Mabel walked away. "I'm the PRESIDENT of Club Smart Ass!"

And of course, immediately Max's grin turned into a reflective frown.

"Max take a look at this." 99 said about an hour later back in Max's room at the Boulder Inn.

She sat on a chair from a work table at the wall just opposite the foot of the single sized bed where Max was now seated. 99 had moved the chair from the work table so she was closer to Max to facilitate a discussion. While her lavender trench coat hung on the hook at the door to the room, Max's sports jacket hung on the chair she sat on revealing his shoulder holster with the 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police revolver in it.

Max looked up from the bills he had been reading to take the one that 99 handed him and followed her slender finger where she pointed and explained.

"See Max? Kramarenko, Murr and Sutyagin flew to Boulder as Frank Kozowski, Robert Donnellan and Dan Miller, but they checked into the Boulderado as Liam Haughey, Ron Brennan and Julian Mercer. Luckily for us they used the same names to order the vodka and lager from the liquor store, but more importantly, they didn't pay their bills upfront. They billed it to an expense account made out to this company."

Max squinted as he read out the name.

"Kierkegaard-And-Oliver's-Solenoids-and-Generators-Company. That sounds familiar." Max looked up, his brow furrowing in thought.

"It's a company that CONTROL's been monitoring for round a month." 99 declared. "We suspect it's a KAOS front using their fleet of trucks to ship stolen merchandise across the country to be sold on the black market."

"Yes." Max shook a finger in agreement. "And we haven't been able to pin anything on them yet. But even then, why would Kramarenko, Sutyagin and Murr pose as employees of THIS company? There are lots of KAOS fronts they could use."

"Maybe these might help." 99 suggested sliding over another set of documents. "Phone bills from their room during their stay and the telephone numbers they called."

"Let's seeee." Max ran his finger down the list, noting as he did. "Most of these calls were to the same number with the area code two-oh-two for Washington D.C."

"Probably their hideout at the time while they were planning the armoured car heist." 99 deduced.

"Right Ninety-Nine. Daily reports likely to S-S-Nineteen or her lieutenants. Wait—" Max paused jabbing his finger at another number. "—This number with the area code three-oh-three. That's Colorado right?"

"That's right Max." 99 agreed upon looking at the bill. "And they've called it a number of times while they were at the Boulderado."

"We gadda find out where this number goes to. But it might be a KAOS front too." Max thought.

"Let's check in with the Chief and have CONTROL West look into it. They probably have a better idea." 99 suggested.

"Right Ninety-Nine." Max agreed placing the bills down and lifted up his right foot to remove his shoe.

But just before he flipped it over to twist the heel, he stopped to stare into the shoe before turning it slowly upside down for a stream of snow to fall out of it. The white flakes poured till there was a molehill worth of it on the carpet.

Looking up, Max grimaced at 99 who also looked on curiously.

"It's not even melting."

With that, Max twisted the heel, removed the outsole and flipped up the mouthpiece to begin dialling, adding as he did.

"Hopefully the Chief has something else for us to go on by now."

The Chief, dressed in a suit of black pants, light brown tweed jacket and dark tie, stared at the large map mounted on the wall of Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Kansas. A large number of red, blue and white pins were stuck to the map throughout the states. In the large office of CONTROL West's secret headquarters in Las Vegas which he stood in now, the map was mounted on the West wall with a large desk at the North wall and the other walls were lined with slot machines and there was even a poker and black jack table in the centre of the room.

The sliding door in the South wall between two slot machines moved apart and an African American male of medium height with a neat compact afro strolled in, dressed in a neat dark beige suit and blue tie, bearing a file in his hand.

"Morning Chief!" He greeted. "Here's the h…h…haaaaarrrhhwww…" the agent was interrupted as his yawn cut him off and he put a fist over his mouth as he handed the report over to the Chief and managed to continue after that. "…arrwww..whew! Sorry Chief! Hourly report from our agents in the field."

"Thank you Porter." The Chief acknowledged and as he flipped through the file asked. "Has there been any sightings that might lead us to S-S-Nineteen and her unit?"

"Fraid' not Chief." Porter shook his head as he stood at the other end of the map opposite the Chief and pointed to a spot on the map. "One of ourrrrr….arruuuuuhhhh…" Porter bent his head again putting his fist to his mouth in a failed attempt to stifle his yawn and it was at least 2-3 seconds before he finished and lifted his tired, oval, ebony features again. "SO sorry Chief! Um…our men spotted a KAOS agent—Rass Benito, here at the Buttermilk ski area in Pitkin, Colorado. At first, we thought he might be reporting to S-S-Nineteen but turned out he was there for another reason."

"Which is?"

"Skiing." Porter shrugged and as the Chief frowned he added. "Seems KAOS is awarding free ski vacations to Top Agent of the Month in Sabotage, Assassinations and Espionage."

The Chief's eyebrows drooped as he exclaimed.

"KAOS has better saboteurs, assassins and espionage agents than Benito!"

Porter shrugged again with a nonchalant pout as he replied.

"New ratings must be out."

A loud ringing shrilled through the office making both men turn and the Chief headed to the main desk.

"Ah, no Chief! That's the priority line for agents in the field. You can…ah…you c..caaaarrwwwwhhhh…!"

The big yawn again overpowers Porter's attempt at communications and he bends his head again, eyes shut and pressing his fist to his mouth but gamely tries to continue by pointing to the direction the Chief needs to go.

As the Chief followed Porter's finger, the agent gives a determined, powerful exhale and straightens to finish his sentence.

"Whew! Uh…Chief, you can take it on the slot machine phone in the corner there." Porter pointed.

"Oh, thanks." The Chief noted and as he walked over to where Porter pointed, spoke over his shoulder. "You seem exhausted Porter."

"You bet Chief!" Porter shook his head wearily as he squeezed his eyes shut and massaged his temple. "Night shift at the Flamingo as a croupier."

"If this wasn't so urgent and we weren't short of agents I'd let you get some rest." The Chief said apologetically.

"Thanks Chief! I'll haaa….aaaarrrrrrwww!" Porter yawned again, this time bending over to rest his hands on his knees.

The Chief grimaced in sympathy as he reached the ringing slot machine in the Southwest corner and looked about the device before looking back at the yawning Porter wonderingly.

Finishing his latest yawn, Porter straightened and pointed from where he stood at the map.

"The handle's the receiver. But you gadda put a silver dollar in first. Don't worry it's rigged da answer."

The Chief lifted a finger in realisation and as he searched through his pockets, Porter sighed and commented.

"You know Chief, after three years out here in the City that Never Sleeps, working night shift after night shift round the clock, sometimes with only one other agent for rotation—I'm suddenly acutely aware of something CONTROL West really needs out here."

"More manpower." The Chief acknowledged as he produced a silver dollar from his tweed sports jacket pocket.

"Sleep." Porter shrugged with a tired smirk as his eyes started becoming bleary again. "The city might not need it but we sure do. You now Chief, I'd hate da ask—" Porter tilted his round face sheepishly. "—I don't suppose I could get a transfer over to the East coast or even down south. ANY-where but casinos."

The Chief raised an eyebrow as he looked at the ceiling, flipping the coin in his hand in thought as the priority line rang on.

"Well, we really need you out here for now but let's see if something opens up in a year or two. I'll see if I can do some agent rotation once more recruits graduate." The Chief stated as he dropped his silver dollar into the coin slot.

"Thanks Chief." Porter bowed his head wearily and as he raised it, gave a lop-sided reflective smile. "After the constant bright lights, noise, gambling and neck breaking pace of the Vegas strip, I could use something more down da earth and sedate. A waiter, delivery guy, accountant—" Porter looks up at the ceiling in thought. "—bus boy or porter wouldn't be bad. Get da travel and see the country!"

The Chief nodded in amusement as he took hold of the knob on top of the lever and yanked down on it. The 3 reels of the slot machine spun for a few seconds before one by one, they came to a stop displaying the symbols of a revolver, an open shoe phone and finally the word KAOS. With that, the ringing stopped and the Chief pulled at the handle's base. The lever came away from it's aperture trailing a wire from it's base. Placing the knob to his ear and speaking into the base of the lever, the Chief spoke.

"This is the Chief here."

"Hey there Chief! Eighty-Six here!" came the nasal voice from the other end, made even more nasally by the filter of the phones.

"Max!" the Chief exclaimed seemingly relieved for once to hear Max's voice. "I hope you have something for us. We're getting nowhere here!"

"Still no sign of any KAOS agents Chief?" Max asked

The Chief rolled his eyes throwing his arm in the air as he spoke into the slot machine lever receiver.

"Oooooh there are LOTS of sightings! Just not the one we NEED! In the last FOUR days, CONTROL West discovered—" he extended finger after finger from his right fist as he counted off. "—a KAOS data smuggling ring in Pershing, counterfeiting operation in Clark, unlicensed prisoner-of-war camp in Utah, money laundering in Kansas—but NO S-S-Nineteen and no ROBBERY unit!"

"Wait a minute!" Max exclaimed into his shoe phone, his eyes popping in shock. "Did you say….money laundering in Kansas?!—" Max titled his head in wonder as he declared. "—And I thought MISSILE silos took away the wholesome family-feel of the place."

"Never mind that Max." the Chief sighed. "Please tell me you and Ninety-Nine have found something by now."

"Oh yeah. We managed da locate where S-S-Nineteen's men had been staying."

"That's fantastic Max!" the Chief exclaimed "How did you managed that?"

"Well, we realised—Russians and Germans in Colorado—they're gonna be on the hunt for a taste of home." Max beamed on the phone. "So we checked all the liquor stores in Boulder and found one that imports good Vodka and Lager AND deliver. Took us to the hotel they were staying and the new names they checked in with after they flew in."

"Good work you two!" the Chief praised, smiling for the first time in many days. "What did you and Ninety-Nine find?"

"Well, it took a while for the CONTROL West agent you sent da get a proper cover in the Boulderado."

"Yes, Porter mentioned you asked for some assistance." The Chief nodded.

"And she could only get a cover as a maid making it harder da get the records from accounting, hence the delay." Max explained. "But she came through and passed it to Ninety-Nine this morning. It confirms the new names that Kramarenko, Sutyagin and Murr were using. Plus it seems they were posing as employees of the suspected KAOS front, Kierkegaard And Oliver's Solenoids and Generators Co."

"It's not surprising." The Chief noted. "We still have nothing on that company from our surveillance so they can pretty much operate in the clear. What else Max?"

"We got their phone bills and they've made lots' ev calls to this number in Colorado. We need da know what it is and if it's a KAOS front."

"Alright. Give me the number." The Chief said signalling to Porter who was already hurrying over with a pen and paper while stifling another yawn.

The Chief quickly jotted down the number which Max read out to him.

"I'll have Porter run this now through their case computer. Porter?"

"On it Chief." Porter took the slip of paper from the Chief and stepped over to the next slot machine but paused as he reached out a hand while pointing at the coin slot. "Uh Chief, do you mind?"

"Oh, here." The Chief dug into his jacket pocket and produced another silver dollar.

Dropping in the silver dollar, Porter inserted the slip of paper with the phone number into a slot under the reels. There was a low buzz as a mechanism pulled the paper in. Porter then cranked the lever sending the reels spinning and at the same time, indicator lights flashed on the slot machine and multi-tonal bleeps sounded out. The reels stopped one at a time showing the symbols:

"CONTROL" "a garrotte" and "a blackjack"

A _ka-ching_ emitted from the slot machine signalling an end to the flashing lights and bleeps and instead of coins or a reward pouring out into the prize receipt tray, a card dropped into it.

Porter handed it over to the Chief who read it over the lever phone.

"Okay Max. CONTROL West's computer confirmed the number belongs to a company called _Buckman's Auto-Deals._ It's a motor vehicle dealership, specializing in heavy duty vehicles. It seems they're the authorized agents and dealers for a number of vehicle manufacturers."

"Is it a KAOS front?" Max enquired.

"No. CONTROL West checked them out. They're legit. Max, I need you and Ninety-Nine to check out this company and try to find out why S-S-Nineteen sent Kramarenko to them."

"Right Chief." Max nodded signalling with his hands to 99 who quickly handed him a pad and pen from the work table. "Where exactly in Colorado are they?...Oh right here in Boulder. Okay gimme the address."

Max scribbled the address down rapidly before saying.

"Okay Chief. We're on our way"

"Oh Max, wait." The Chief said, suddenly something clicking in his mind making him frown. "I just thought of something. How did you get all the liquor store owners to show you their records without revealing your identities?"

"Oh that." Max explained. 'We got some fake badges from our disguise kit and told them we were doing a government audit on their alcohol licenses and stocks."

The Chief's eyes widened as all joy he felt for the last few seconds was sucked away into the mouthpiece of the slot machine lever phone giving way for him to holler.

"Is THAT why the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Divisions' been trying to reach me in D.C for the past THREE days?!"

"It depends." Max stated simply.

"On what?!"

"Were they mad?"

"Hodgkins said they WERE!"

"Then I have no idea what THAT'S about." Max pouted, shrugging nonchalantly. "I mean, people get mad for all kinds of reasons."

"What ELSE could it BE Max?!"

Max shrugged again and suggested.

"Maybe they're still peeved over how much harder their job is since Prohibition ended."

The Chief let out a slow breathe with his eyes closed as his free fist shook violently as he fought back the seizure he knew would be inevitable as he scowled, cursed and grumbled a string of unintelligible vitriol into the handle receiver.

Porter squinted with concern saying.

"Chief I think maybe YOU need a nap too."


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

"Chief. We were just at _Buckman's Auto-Deals."_ Max spoke into his shoe phone about less than an hour later back at the Boulder Inn, this time in 99's room. "99 pretended da be the secretary to Haughey-Kramarenko's alias. She told them she needed a copy of the paperwork for their transactions for tax purposes and travel expense and they were REALLY helpful to what they'd hope would be a repeat customer."

Max sat on the chair at the work desk in the room, again with his sports jacket handing off the chair as he referred to a few sheets of documents he had in his hand.

"Good. What did you find out?" the Chief said from the office at CONTROL West's secret headquarters where he spoke again on the handle of the slot machine phone.

"It's TRUCKS, Chief." Max reported as he read the documents. "That's why S-S-Nineteen sent her men there. Kramarenko purchased two trucks from _Buckman's Auto-Deals_. Specifically, two Kenworth Worthington Nine-Hundred, tractor units—sleeper cab option, off-road capabilities. Each one with a fifty-foot Wing trailer—you know, the kind where the sides are motorized doors, hinged at the top, opens up like a bird's wings."

"Gull-wing doors yes." The Chief nodded before frowning in thought. "This explains why S-S-Nineteen needed Murr and Sutyagin's expertise in Colorado.—W-Nine-Hundreds. Those are heavy duty vehicles with weight limits over thirty-thousand pounds. Whatever they're after for their final objective has to be bulky and extremely heavy. Something they couldn't fit into ordinary vans or even light and medium trucks!"

"Or something light but just really big." Max offered.

"Of course." The Chief nodded on the slot machine handle in thought.

"Or something small but just a lot of it."

"Yes Max."

"OR a very HEAVY something of moderate or SMALL size but a LOT of it…"

"I get the PICTURE MAX!" hollered the Chief

"We've got a full description of the semis, Chief." Max continued as 99 entered from the bathroom and walked over to sit at the foot of the bed near him, crossing her long lean legs as she listened attentively. "Colour, license plates, all of it."

"Anything else?" the Chief inquired "Were you able to find out where Kramarenko might have taken the vehicles after he purchased them?"

"Afraid not Chief." Max shook his head as he tossed the documents onto the work table. "The manager Steve said Kramarenko arranged to pick up the new trucks AT Buckman's Autos. Sutyagin and Murr then drove em off the lot and they haven't been seen since. They could be anywhere. Couldn't we get CONTROL West and the police da help keep an eye out for them?"

"We could—" The Chief sighed "—but it's not going to be easy to spot them even with the descriptions. Since arriving on the market four years ago, the W-Nine-Hundred is one of the most popular and widely utilized tractor units. There must be hundreds in Colorado alone!"

The Chief's worry was briefly interrupted as the sliding door between the two slot machines to the office hissed and Porter came rushing in again, this time waving a letter sized piece of paper in his hands as he called out.

"Chief!"

"What is it Porter?" the Chief asked with unparalleled relief at this rescue from ornithological species-named vehicular portals as he took the paper.

"Surveillance report just in from our agents!"

It took the Chief only a second to read the report and a smile rapidly eased the tired muscles of his head and face.

"Max! We have something!"

"One minute Chief." Max said

The Chief waited and after a second or two Max came back on the line.

"Okay, go ahead Chief."

"What happened?" was the Chief's puzzled query at the pause.

"My shoe phone still feels like a block of ice out here, I was starting da loose feeling in my other ear."

The excitement over the latest intelligence managed to sweep the Chief right over this latest revelation by Max as he referred to the report and explained.

"Max! CONTROL West has spotted a KAOS agent in Jefferson County, that could lead us to the robbery unit."

"CONTROL West spotted someone from the robbery unit." Max informed 99 whose blue eyes widened eagerly and a dazzling smile lit up her face. "Where in Jefferson, Chief?"

"Lakewood." The Chief replied looking at the report. "They spotted him at _Happy Car's 24-HR Auto-Repairs and Car Wash_ , located at West 14th Avenue and Vance Street. He's still there as we speak but we don't know for how much longer."

"But Chief." Max objected. "Like you said, CONTROL West's been sighting and uncovering KAOS agents and operations from Nevada to Kansas! What makes us think THIS agent is connected to S-S-Nineteen?"

"Because—" the Chief explained shaking the piece of paper he held as though he had their quarry right in his grasp. "— _Happy Car's 24-HR Auto-Repairs and Car Wash_ is a KAOS front that CONTROL West has had under surveillance for the past two months! It's basically a special weapons lab in disguise providing retrofits, upgrades and maintenance to KAOS cars, —hidden machine guns, smoke screens, bullet proof windshields, flame-throwers…"

"AND a car wash?!" Max noted with raised eyebrows and scoffed. "I wanna be a KAOS car too!"

"CONTROL West is waiting for the right moment to raid them." The Chief persevered before raising a finger from his report clutching hand for emphasis. "But more definitively for this case—the KAOS agent spotted, is Rudolf Hinkel."

"Rudolf Hinkel? Hinkel—Hinkel—Hinkel..." Max repeated, squinting as he gazed over at 99 questioningly.

99's inhaled in realisation, blue eyes widening as she shook a slender finger.

"Oh! He…he was a member of that KAOS weapons depot and data smuggling ring in Stuttgart that CONTROL dismantled six months back! One of the four KAOS agents who managed to escape."

"Chief!" Max exclaimed turning back to his shoe phone. "I know who he is! He was a member of that weapons depot and data smuggling operation in Stuttgart that CONTROL dismantled six months back! One of the four KAOS agents who escaped!"

As 99 gave Max a sideways stare and lopsided smile, the Chief nodded tiredly on the other end saying.

"Yes, well done Max."

"But Chief, why do we think Hogey…uh…Hinkey…." Max squinted struggling with the name turning back to 99 again and gesturing with a palm as though he could catch it in the air.

"HINKEL." The Chief, Porter and 99 echoed.

"That's what I said!" Max grimaced on the phone to both of them. "Hinkoff! But Chief, why do we think Hogey…Hickey…Hic…Why do we think he's part of the robbery unit?"

"Well," the Chief explained. "—after reading your reports on von Graf and the KAOS shortwave station, I had Intelligence Section do a thorough assessment of all files on known KAOS agents. They've been sending me updates via our Inter-Office Top Secret Relay."

"Oh, yeah. I THOUGHT your Outgoing-Rocks tray was piling up." Max remarked.

"Along with the broken glass behind my desk." The Chief declared with drooping eyebrows for a second before going on. "Anyway, Hinkel was one of the KAOS agents I received an update on. It seems, during the war, he was a Hauptsturmführer—a Captain, in the Reich Main Security Office."

"The same outfit that von Graf claimed he worked for!" Max realized and 99 leaned forward earnestly at this revelation even though she only heard part of it.

"Correct!" the Chief declared. "According to his files, Hinkel started out as a member of Hitler's personal guard, the Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler. He served with distinction for several years starting from the invasion of Poland and won commendations from Order of the Iron Cross up to the Order Of The Knight's Cross Of The Iron Cross, thus catching the eye of Hitler and Reinhard Heydrich which got him elevated to the Reich Main Security Office's Amt Three—the office of domestic intelligence."

"HE must've got invited to all the best parties at the time." Max remarked.

"The point being!" the Chief soldiered on. "If S-S-Nineteen answers to von Graf who in turn is overseeing the robbery unit, then Hinkel is absolutely the kind of agent that the Oberführer would trust to be part of such a high priority mission!"

"It DOES pay da be part of the right fraternity!" Max nodded sagely with his eyes closed.

"Max. You and Ninety-Nine get to Lakewood now. CONTROL West will relay Hinkel's movements if he leaves the Happy Cars auto-shop." The Chief continued without preamble.

"Uuuuh Chief." 86 grimaced and winked, tilting his head. "Another car repair place? If it ends with me walking into a trap, shot at and covered in oil again—I'll pass. I've already spent most of next month's salary on dry cleaning alone."

"Don't worry Max. CONTROL West will have your back on this." The Chief assured and looked at this watch. "Now, it's a forty-minute drive to Lakewood if you're lucky. We'll let you know as you go of any changes. We HAVE to follow Hinkel back to the robbery unit or capture him and make him talk with Plan Sixty-Two dash Six!"

"Right Chief. Getting set for Lakewood now." Max confirmed and 99 nodded as well, standing up and walking over to the closet to prepare.


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

The Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa was located at the corner of West Hampden Avenue where the road made a right angle turn and split to become the two-way South Vance Street. Both West Hampden Avenue and South Vance Street had an entrance into the hotel's large parking lot.

After the parking lot came the Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa itself, an L-shaped building consisting of it's 10 storey primary rectangular block with it's Northern length facing W Hampden Avenue while South Vance Street bordered it at it's West end. The shorter arm of it's L-shape was in the form of a one storey extension to half the length of it's Northern side which contained the hotel's lavish and much spoken of, The Eyrie – Bar and Grill. The name of the hotel was spelt out in 10 foot tall gold letters mounted on it's roof which lit up in full neon glory at night, ensuring that no one passing by or driving into Lakewood on Highway 285 beyond W Hampden Avenue, would miss it whether in day or night.

Across the two-way South Vance Street at the Soaring Eagle's West end was _Donny's Doughnuts_ , which was directly in-line with the Golden Eagle with it's front entrance facing the hotel's West end across the street. Donny's Doughnuts was surrounded by ample parking lots which also divided it from and served the 2 restaurants and another café to it's right consisting of a one-storey rectangular shaped Italian restaurant _Colomba's Pastaria_ , followed by a square shaped family style seafood restaurant _The Glorious Seafront_ , in front of which was a small café whose sign was not visible. After that, forming a 3-way junction with S Vance Street was the two-way W Jefferson Avenue.

Cruising down West Jefferson Avenue to ensure they remained at the South side of the Soaring Eagle for as long as possible, Max made a right turn into South Vance Street. He drove their rented maroon Buick LeSabre convertible a few hundred feet before making a turn into S Vance Street's opposite lane to enter the car parks for the restaurants and cafes.

Max parked their LeSabre in one of the numerous lots between Donny's Doughnuts and the Colomba's Pastaria. There were only a few cars, trucks and semis in the entire place, having just past the lunch hour.

"There it is Ninety-Nine. Donny's Doughnuts." Max grimaced as he stepped out of the car, dressed in a suit of black pants, dark blue woollen sports jacket, a light blue shirt and black tie with thick light gray and blue bands.

"It's strange that Hinkel would move from the KAOS auto-shop in north Lakewood all the way down south to this place." 99 noted as she closed the passenger door of their maroon LeSabre and stood looking about for a moment, dressed in a knee length scarlet and darker red lined plaid flare skirt, white stockings and a heavy crotch length jacket of dark blue with 6 gold buttons in 2 columns of 3, over a light gray turtle neck sweater. A large scarlet newsboy cap covered most of her brown hair down to her ears and a big handbag of gray leather with a silver buckle hung from her left shoulder at her ribs.

"Let's get to Donny's and find out why." Max said.

Max's shoes and 99's light gray knee high go-go boots swept and crunched through the snow that blanketed the parking lot as they proceeded towards Donny's Doughnuts.

Donny's Doughnuts advertised itself explicitly in a not so silent challenge to the signs of the other food and beverage establishments and even the Soaring Eagle's presence, with a sign on it's roof directly in line with the front entrance; a giant icing and chocolate covered doughnut of plastic, the size of a pick-up truck's tire. The word "DONNY'S" in bright neon yellow surmounted the top half of the doughnut's circumference while "DOUGHNUTS" in neon orange hugged the lower half.

"CONTROL West certainly picked a cheerful choice for a front." 99 mused, gesturing with her light gray hairsheep leather gloved hand at the unabashed egregious signage as they approached.

"Yes. It's nice to know you can fight evil on the side of niceness and STILL contribute to the country's daily sugar overdose." Max nodded approvingly making 99 cast him a crooked smile and side eye roll before she asked.

"How will we identify ourselves to the agents inside?"

"Porter told me over the shoe phone on our way here. We're to ask for their special doughnut—the Melodious Melange."

"Sounds exotic." 99 laughed softly sending a stream of frost from her delicate lips as they passed through the entrance under the giant doughnut.

The interior of Donny's Doughnut matched it's signs with tables and chairs of bright yellow and orange, all empty at the moment. The south side of the café with the main entrance pointed in the direction of the hotel across South Vance Street was a glass wall while it's east wall was concrete lined with large windows looking out over an off-ramp of US Highway 285 which linked to the highway itself at a point just before the Soaring Eagle and to South Wadsworth Boulevard at the other end behind the café.

The north wall mounted large pictures of mouth-watering doughnuts on plates next to cups of steaming coffees while a long counter beginning at the north wall stretched, parallel to the west wall till it nearly reached the glass south wall leaving a gap enough for 2 persons to enter, shoulder to shoulder. A large glass display case was built into the middle of the counter displayed the outlet's signature products, shelves upon shelves of colourful, multi-flavoured doughnuts.

A slender brunette waitress, dressed in a uniform of orange and yellow knee length dress and sneakers turned from her task of cleaning a table at the north wall, to the chiming of the bell attached to the door as Max and 99 stepped in.

"Good afternoon!" she greeted brightly with a dazzling smile and gestured at the empty tables most of which still bore signs of the breakfast and morning break onslaught ie empty or half empty coffee mugs, scrap littered plates and used cutlery. "Be with you in a moment okay?"

"Thanks!" Max said and 99 felt a flush of jealous heat rising past her turtle neck up to her face as she caught his familiar lascivious smirk as he spoke and his eyes played over the waitresses slender upper back and waist which flowed into the smooth curves of her hips and apple shaped buttocks outlined in the garish yellow of her uniform which clad her 5 ft 8 inch form.

"Sorry. We're kinef shorthanded today and the lunch crowd'll be in soon." The waitress explained as she moved to another table with a heavy rectangular plastic basket laden with used plates, cups and utensils.

As she spoke, 99 however felt the burning sensation of her neck and cheeks subside rapidly as she noted the girl's warm genuine smile and despite the winter temperatures outside, the sweat on her forehead which trapped her thin brunette bangs. She could not be older than 23 which together with her lean but curvaceous form made her exactly Max's type. But her demure hazel eyes and strained look on her face won 99 over.

"We were hoping da try out your…uh…what'd they call it, that special doughnut?" Max turned to 99, pretending to try and remember. "Oh! The Melodious Melange!"

A millisecond's stoppage in the pulsing of her neck as she breathed was the only sign that the waitress had any reaction out of the ordinary to the code word. Her actions continued without a break as she placed her plastic basket at a table near the centre and started collecting the utensils there, giving her strained smile as she spoke and gestured at the counter with her cleaning rag.

"You're in for an experience! We're kinef customer-less at the moment. Why don't you take a seat at the counter…DONNY! DONNY?! Customers at the counter!"

"Be right out!" hollered a gruff voice from a plastic curtained doorway at the north wall between the counter and the west wall which obviously lead to the kitchen.

As Max and 99 settled into high swivel seats at the counter with the display case to their right, a broad slab of a man matching every bit the gruff voice parted the plastic strips of the curtain with a rattle and stepped into the serving area behind the counter.

He appeared to be in his late forties, reaching beyond 6 feet in height with beefy shoulders barely contained in his uniform yellow short sleeved shirt revealing big biceps and hairy forearms. Topping his yellow shirt and black pants was a long orange apron bearing in coloured thread, a duplicate of the giant doughnut sign on the roof. The generous curve of his chunky abdomen seemed to have the added benefit of accentuating the doughnut on the apron into 3 dimensional proportions.

His buzz cut square head was topped with a garish dixie cup hat of orange with the café's sign on. Beneath the hat was a face as gruff as his voice with blocky cheek bones that sloped down to a hard jaw and lower lip that seemed forever pouting upwards like a giant grouper.

"What can I get cha?!" Donny asked slapping his big hairy backed hands together with a resounding smack that would have echoed for several seconds if they were in the Grand Canyon.

Max wondered what would happen if there was a human head between those big palms at the time despite Donny's contrastingly cheerful demeanour.

"We'd like da try your house specialty. The Melodious Melange is it?"

"You bet it is!" Donny declared with a proud nod and added in a more circumspect voice. "Eighty-Six. Ninety-Nine. Welcome da Lakewood. Donny Colgan—CONTROL West."

"Max." Max nodded.

"We've got privacy for the moment but let's keep up the customer-businessman act as we talk. People could be looking in from the outside." Donny instructed with his pouting lipped grin and jerked a big thumb at the display case. "Our afternoon special? Medium hot beverage with any two doughnuts for six bucks even."

"Sounds good. Coffee black." Max

"Cream and sugar." Was 99's choice as she tugged at the fingertips of her gray hairsheep leather gloves to remove them.

"Comin right up!" Donny trotted over to the display and spoke with the jovial manner any customer-friendly proprietor would as he prepared their orders. "That's agent Lorie O'Neill over there doin the hard work."

"Gaddit." Max acknowledged.

"Your name is really Donny?" 99 enquired as she slipped a sideways glance at Lorie who had paused at one of the corner tables to wipe the sweat from her forehead.

"The agent in charge of 'front' names was feeling bored that day." Donny grimaced and grumbled as he dispensed steaming coffee from a machine into a cup. "More of a rib-and-steak-joint kinef guy myself ya know? Thought about setting one up after my retirement if I don't get shot, stabbed, poisoned, blown up, quartered or mauled by exotic animals."

"We all gadda have our dreams." Max said sarcastically, gazing sideways at the big man through squinted beady eyes before asking. "What'ev you got for us Donny?"

"Hinkel arrived at Happy Cars at ten-fifteen." Donny reported while he spooned tea leaves into a mesh tea infuser ball. "Our surveillance teams said he was there fer bout ten minutes before he high tailed it down here. He's been in The Eyrie—the Soaring Eagle's bar, ever since."

"Any idea what he was doing at the KAOS auto-shop?" queried Max

"We haven't been able da bug the place yet." Donny replied as he used a pair of plastic tongs to pick out doughnuts and place them on one of two plates he held effortlessly in his big hand. "All our agents could tell from outside, is he had something in his trunk in a large wooden box. It might be a distributor or some other part of a vehicle engine. He seemed to give some pretty detailed instructions to the KAOS agents who ran the shop."

"He probably wanted it modified for the W-Nine-Hundreds they bought." Max deduced to which 99 nodded her agreement.

"Makes sense." Donny added as he walked over first with their steaming cups on saucers with a teaspoon on each and placed them on the counter in front of his 'customers' before continuing his assessment as he walked back to the preparation area. "Hinkel's file shows he studied auto and mechanical engineering in Leipzig University. Maybe whatever they needed modified or fixed was complex enough da warrant his expertise. It's definitely taking a while based on how long he's been in the Eyrie."

"If he wanted a drink while he waited, why did he come all the way down here?" was 99's query. "There has to be bars closer to the auto-shop."

"Yeah there are. But the Eyrie serves the best Doppelbocks and single grain whiskeys in Lakewood." Donny answered as he walked back over with the two plates of doughnuts.

"That's right Ninety-Nine." Max nodded tilting his head towards her slightly as he spoke. "In 1959, Hinkel shot a bar owner in Dresden for serving him an inferior imitation Bavarian lager. Six months after that, a tavern in Einbeck mixed up his Maibock with Traditional bock so he shot the owner along with seven waiters right after he gave them a stern three hour lecture on the differences between the two lagers. Then two years ago in St. Gallen, he broke the neck of another owner who served him Snaps instead of Schnapps before making off with all the Schnapps and burning the whole tavern down. Finally last year in Kulmbach, another tavern served him an Eisbock which wasn't icy enough meaning it was just a doppelbock, so he shot the owner along with the five staff, dumped their bodies in the cold room, before blowing up the entire establishment with C4. His reputation is well deserved."

"As a maniacal, ruthless, cold blooded KAOS killer." 99 nodded.

"No, as a wine and liquor connoisseur." Max declared.

"Here ya go Max! The Melodious Melange! That's twelve bucks total." Donny announced placing the plates before them on the counter.

"Thanks Donny. Looks good!" Max declared genuinely handing over the bills from his wallet as he looked over the 2 orange and yellow icing swathed doughnuts on his plate.

"That's an ingenious code." 99 commented as Donny deposited the notes into the cash register as Max took a drink of coffee. "But what happens if an actual customer really orders the Melodious Melange?"

"Naaah. That'll never happen." Donny assured coming back over to them and leaning a big elbow on the counter as he spoke while Max bit hungrily into his doughnut.

"Why not?" 99 asked.

"It tastes like crap."

"PPPPPPPTTTT! PTOOOOOOOOOI! PTOOOOOOII! PT! PT! PTOOOOOIII!"

99 jumped in her seat and leaned back as Max half stood, bending over as a stream of soggy, sticky, saliva soaked, chewed doughnut and orange and yellow icing spewed from his lips back onto his plate, covering the other doughnut in orange and yellow glop, while Donny just remained resting on his elbow without blinking.

"Uuuuggghhh!" Max gasped, beady eyes squeezed shut, mouth twisted and orange and yellow tinged tongue sticking out as he grabbed the napkin to wipe the mess from his mouth before taking a swallow of hot coffee. "Ugh! What's IN this thing?!"

"Bittering agent, lemon, mustard, quinine, onions, castor oil, liverwurst and under done sheep's kidneys." Donny rattled off with a nonchalant shrug.

"We USED the right code phrase and you KNOW it's US! Did you HAVE to serve it knowing it TASTES like THIS?!" Max exclaimed struggling to open his beady eyes which were squeezed shut from the most unmelodious of after tastes.

"No." Donny replied. "But I got a hundred boxes back there and they're just not moving."

"Couldn't you have WARNED me not to eat it?!" Max demanded, eyes watering making Donny look even more troll like.

"And waste FOOD?!" came Donny's appalled answer. "Do you know how many people are starving all over the world?!"

"Be right there da clean it up in a sec!" Lorie chimed in breathlessly as she hurried past Donny behind the counter with a laden basket of used utensils and dishes to disappear through the plastic curtains.

99 looked warily at her own doughnuts though they were simply, flattened spheres covered in what appears to be chocolate and not the melodious variety Max was given.

"Nah, no worries." Donny assured jerking a thumb over his boulder like shoulder at the display. "Everything else in there is bulk purchased from Mister Donut on a relabelling contract. You got an ordinary orange custard filling with chocolate frosting on top."

"Why doesn't SHE get em?!" Max scowled at Donny as he drank coffee again.

"You asked for em not her." Donny shrugged with a tilt of his orange dixie cup.

"Hi there!" Lorie came dashing out from the kitchen and over to them with rag in hand, beads of sweat still trickling down her forehead and plastering her fringe. "I'll take care of this."

As she picked up Max's doughnut fallout filled plate and wiped away the spots of spittle and melodious melange that went outside of the plate's blast radius, she nodded, still with a strained smile acknowledging.

"Eight-Six. Ninety-Nine."

Max was still trying to scrape his tongue with his napkin so 99 nodded, noting the girl was even lovelier up close—brunette locks tied into a simple pony tail reaching to her upper back, symmetrical small cheekbones, a button nose and soft small lips—though she though with an internal sigh, that these features on any woman were as always, lost on Max in favour of other more obvious attributes.

"Agent O'Neill."

"Please—Lorie." She smiled sweeping the mess onto the plate.

"Sorry O'Neill. Don't mean da have ya bustin a gut out here alone." Donny grumped with a toss of his bright dixie cup at the sitting area.

"No worries Colgan." Lorie answered with her ever present smile which 99 realised was only partially an act as she wiped the counter top. "If you started helping the help, the other owners over there'll be pissed at you setting a bad example and our cover'll be blown.—So what's the plan?"

"Ugggghhhh…." Max groaned through his napkin, moving it only an inch away to gripe. "You got some high concentrate hydrochloric acid back there da BURN the taste off my tongue!?"

"You want us da move on the auto-shop?" asked Donny.

"Here Max." 99 said pushing her plate over to Max who instantly grabbed one of her doughnuts and stuffed it into his mouth as she answered the CONTROL West agents. "If we do, it might alert S-S-Nineteen and her robbery unit that we're on to them. We need da follow Hinkel to them or find out from him where they are or at least, their final target."

"Ummmphh…" Max interjected with a raised finger, already working on his last mouthful of the first doughnut and a second later polished it off. "Right! We can try following him, but we risk him spotting us and giving us the slip or leading us into a trap."

"Either way, S-S-Nineteen will know we're too close and maybe call off their mission." 99 affirmed.

Max grimaced, eyebrows furrowing in annoyance as he turned to her slowly.

"If you don't mind, Ninety-Nine—I'd like to handle this MY way."

"Oh! Right Max!" Ninety-Nine nodded quickly.

Turning back to Donny and Lorie, Max declared.

"So you see, either way, S-S-Nineteen will know we're too close and maybe call off their mission."

And though Max was oblivious to it, this sent Donny and Lorie into a long confounded squinting as they stared back and forth between him and 99.

"So!" Max continued with a raised finger for attention. "Instead of following him, this time, we're going to execute plan "Sixty-Two dash Six, which the Chief approved."

"What's that?" this from Donny.

"We give Hinkel, these!" Max declared and with a flourish, held up a small round bottle which he pulled from his dark blue tweed sport's jacket's pocket.

Donny and Lorie looked quizzically at the bottle which seemed to contain flat, white tablets.

"CONTROL's latest innovation in the field of truth drugs!" Max explained proudly.

"Truth pills." Donny deduced.

"Even BETTER!" Max declared. "CONTRADICTION pills!"

"How does that work?" Lorie asked, her delicate brunette brows raised as she continued pretending to wipe the table.

"It's very simple." Max explained. "Have you ever been in a heated conversation or an argument and you felt this absolutely uncontrollable urge to contradict EVERYTHING the other person says? Well this is the way the pills work. It targets the areas of the brain that controls speech and the need to CORRECT any perceived inaccuracies in verbal or written information. So—once a person takes this pill, all we'll have to do is to tell him something we know to be true, and he'll be INSTANTLY compelled to tell us the truth! For example if I know his favorite color to be black. I'll simply say to him, 'I know, your favorite color is BLUE!', or any other color that's a lie. And he will INSTANTLY blurt out his—'true colors'! Heh!—Heh! True colors! Get it? True…Heh! Heh! Eeehhh…"

Max's big grin slowly turned into a grimace before melting into a scowl as he realized the only response he was getting from Donny and Lorie to his joke were either perplexity or boredom in the case of the former.

"That's a really interesting invention there…weird but interesting." Donny commented with a tilt of his dixie cupped head.

"It was invented by one of our former lab heads in Washington before he transferred to our secret headquarters in Cleveland." 99 explained. "Professor Roger Beddington."

"That's right!" Max affirmed holding the pills and scrutinizing it if it was a personal trophy. "One of the most brilliant scientists of our time! Winner of TWO Nobel Prizes! To perfect the formula, he worked tirelessly, around the clock, with only three da four hours of sleep a day and eating only once every TWO days—for five YEARS! Cost him his health, his children AND his marriage."

"Oh." Lorie realized, her hazel brows drooping sadly. "He neglected his family because of his work."

"No." Max replied. "He had a migraine and mistook this for soluble aspirin RIGHT before his wife said 'I know you never cheated on me ROGER.'."

As Donny and Lorie's eyes widened at this revelation, Max added, still gazing proudly at the bottle he held in his hand through squinted eyes.

"That's right! Beddington's three great devotions in life! Country—science—and a Pussycat named Veronica!—Needless to say, his migraine did NOT get better after that."

While 99 sighed and rested her forehead in the palm of her hand, Donny and Lorie took a while to process this with wide eyed blinks before Donny shook his head to reality and asked.

"Right so how do we do this?"

"Simple." Max declared placing the bottle on the counter and explained. "This is how plan Sixty-Two dash Six works. Phase One, Ninety-Nine, you go over there and get friendly with Hinkel. When he's distracted, you slip one of these pills into his drink."

"Right Max!" 99 nodded.

"Phase Two, Donny and Lorie, I need you two to call up CONTROL West headquarters da arrange a cover up so S-S-Nineteen won't know we've taken Hinkel."

"Gaddit." Donny nodded before his hard jaw twitched. "Wait a second. After she slips him the pill, she's gonna just start asking him contradicting questions out there? Hinkel ain't dumb. He's gonna realize something is up when he starts blurting out the details of their operation to a stranger."

"You're right." Ninety-Nine confirmed. "Which is why, after he takes the pill, I'll move him somewhere private. I'll get a room before I go in and let Max know the number."

"And once we have Hinkel in the room, I'll move in, apprehend him and make im—contradict!" Max declared.

"Sounds good." Donny nodded. "Lorie, get Porter on the line. Max, whaddya need?"

Lorie nodded but before she could move, a look of alarm crossed 99's sharp features and she grabbed Max's forearm.

"No Max wait! I can't approach Hinkel!"

Max shook his head slowly, grimacing as he waved his hand nonchalantly while assuring her.

"Don't worry Ninety-Nine! I have faith in you! I mean, you might not be blonde and five foot two but— get a waist length wig, sit where the light is dim and MOST men on the street would find you somewhat, moderately, slightly, in an off-beat kind of, not-truly-hot-way—passable!"

99's breath that slowly passed out her throat and her small, flaring nostrils as her eyes narrowed to bright blue slits with an expression capable of melting a glacier while both Donny and Lorie, eyes popping stared back and forth between 99 and Max several times with absolute incomprehension.

"Not—THAT—Max!" 99 somehow managed to declare without screaming at 86 before unknotting her smooth brow and explained. "When Němec confronted Wilkins and me at the Peer Gynt, he KNEW who I was. He said he and the rest of the robbery unit were familiarized with pictures of all known CONTROL agents. We HAVE to assume S-S-Nineteen has prepared her new unit in the same manner. Hinkel will likely recognize me!"

Max thought for a moment before raising a finger and shaking it towards 99.

"You might be right Ninety-Nine." Turning to Donny Max asked. "Do you guys have any female agents you could call in for this?"

"Not close by." Donny replied. "I'll get Porter on it but it might take an hour or so."

"We can't wait! Hinkel could be gone by then." Max declared before jutting his chin at Lorie. "What about her? O'Neill. How long have you been an agent?"

"I graduated from CONTROL Training School just three months ago. This is my first assignment." Lorie confirmed.

"Perfect!" Max nodded. "Then KAOS unlikely has a file on you yet."

Donny frowned as he turned to Lorie.

"Whaddya think O'Neill? We're not talking bout some feeble, short-sighted seventy year old enemy scientist being sweet-talked over to our side here."

As they all looked at her, Lorie wrung the rag in her hand, smooth lips parting slightly to show her gritted teeth as she sucked in a long hissing, apprehensive breath

"Well…" she said tilting her brunette head, dark brows arching and gazing sideways at the floor. "…I passed 'Infiltration, Seduction and Distraction' and…if something goes wrong and he gets his hands on me—I got through 'Torture' on the first try so I GUESS I'll be okay."

"You passed TORTURE on your first TRY?!" Max exclaimed, eyes popping in shock.

"Look Colgan." Lorie said shrugging. "I'm not eager da be alone with a KAOS agent who goes Norman Bates over booze but—what choice do we have?"

Donny worked his hard jaw for what seemed like forever before he nodded his head decisively.

"Okay. But I'm coming with ya da back you up."

"What about the café?" Lorie asked gesturing around them. "We've never closed this early on a weekday. If KAOS is out there watching us they're gonna get suspicious."

Max thought Donny made a sound which sounded like a cougar just before it pounced on it's prey before the glared over at him.

"You two'll have her back?"

"Absolutely!" 99 nodded reassuringly.

Donny pointed at Lorie and Max before growling.

"Anything happens da her, we're gonna have a long talk and MORE."

"Right! I'll TALK." Max nodded confidently before pointing to 99. "She'll cover the "MORE" cause' SHE said 'absolutely'." Which of course, caused 99 to grimace as she threw him a sideways eye roll.

"I'll go get ready." Lorie said and was about to walk away before pausing to ask Max and 99 with a pained expression and gritted teeth. "I'm not gonna have to actually get—intimate—with him right?"

"Not for this plan." 99 assured reaching out to place a reassuring hand on Lorie's arm. "Once Hinkel takes the tablet, you get im into the room where we'll be waiting. Do you need me to help you get ready?"

Lorie nodded gladly and 99 made sure no one outside was looking in before following her to the back.

"Oh, Colgan." Max said pulling out his cigarette case. "How da I get my money back for the food? File a claim with Standish in Administration section?"

Colgan's blocky brows titled towards each other like the Poconos Mountains in an earthquake.

"Whaddya mean? We don't do that."

"What?!" Max exclaimed, putting a cigarette to his lips. "What're you TALKING about?! This is just a CONTROL West front right? It's all fake!"

"The money is real enough!" Donny assured his orange dixie cup tipping back and forth as he nodded.

"This is Ri-DIC-culous!" Max declared throwing up his hands, the cigarette in his lips flicking up and down in competition with Colgan's dixie cup. "Where does all the money go?!"

Donny lifted a thick finger as he happily explained.

"Good news! All the money that goes into this and all our other food, beverage and hospitality fronts, are channelled to a central fund for the Welfare and Morale of Surviving Agents-CONTROL West Division. We're close da getting a new pool table, fridge AND a big T.V for our rec room soon at CONTROL West secret headquarters."

"But I'm not STATIONED here in CONTROL West!" Max declared with eye-popping incredulity while the cigarette hung and wobbled limply, stuck to his lower lip.

Donny shrugged the big blocks of his shoulders as he replied simply.

"I didn't say it was good news for YOU."

The road stretched out from the city meandering through the forested canyons like hundreds of others in the Colorado state, forming a beauteous dichotomy of nature and progress. Warehouses and garages occupying cleared patches of land dotted the road at either side with the snow covered forests and hills at their backs.

The whine, hums and roar of power tools rumbled through the large space within one of the warehouses as SS-19, decked out in a knee length fitted coat dress of black French serge with an A-line skirt walked from the office across the open floor. The clacking of her black kitten heel shoes driven by the iron muscles of her black stockinged legs almost cut through the mechanical cacophony.

In the centre of the warehouse, the 2 Kenworth W900s, one painted red while the other a dull matte gray, both with their attached box trailers were parked, side by side taking up almost the entire length of the warehouse. At least 6 men crouched around each vehicle, all dressed in dirty green mechanic's overalls making adjustments to the tires, and the engines. One of the W900 tractor units was missing it's entire hood and fender which was being lowered onto it by a chain block.

SS-19 stopped about 10 feet from the nearest W900 and waited quietly like a human shaped black hole and within seconds, one of the men supervising 5 other KAOS agents as they tightened the nuts on one of the wheels of the trailer with an x-shaped lug wrench, turned. Upon seeing her, he turned back to the 5 agents hard at work, growled an order that echoed through the large space they were in.

"You nanny-boys make sure them bolts are TIGHT or I"ll show you just how TIGHT they should be when I shove them lug wrenches up ALL of your ASSES you understand ME?!"

With this threat, he trotted over to the woman in black, wiping his grease covered hands on his overalls.

As the burly man stopped just beyond his arm's length of her, sweat and grease lining his broad cheek bones and round chin, the brim of SS-19's cartwheel hat tilted forward in a greeting nod, causing the black satiny veil to rustle against the serge cloth over her breasts as her voice was somehow heard over the noise.

"Lorenc."

The KAOS agent bowed humbly as he returned the greeting.

"S-S-Nineteen. We'll be done with the mechanical work in a few minutes."

"Gut." SS-19 acknowledged with her hat brim tilted up slightly to face him and yet with seemingly no rush of air from her lips disturbing the veil. "Maintain zer progress. Vee are close to owver goal."

"Gaddit!" Lorenc nodded his strawberry blond curly haired head and jerked a dirty thumb back over his boulder like shoulders at the fender and hood being lowered in place over the further W900's engine. "What is that? It's lighter than the hood it came with."

Lorenc thought he heard what seemed like a soft chuckle coming from behind the black veil but he couldn't be sure as SS-19's body remained as expressionless as a statue.

"A light armour developed vy owver KAOS scientists. Along vith zer new vindows und titanium-tungsten ore reinforced tires you've installed, zer vehicles are able to vithstand all manners of small und light veapons fire."

Lorenc nodded pouting his lower lip.

"That should make it unsporting for the guards. The KAOS way. Gadda love it!"

Before SS-19 could even nod in response, a voice called out.

"S-S-Nineteen!"

SS-19 turned her shoulders and head to see Gerd striding over in a teal blue double-breasted suit and white turtle neck sweater.

"Vell?" SS-19 queried. "Iz zer spare distributor veady?"

"I just spoke to owver agents at zer Happy Cars." Gerd said tilting his light blond Ivy League haircut back at the direction of the office. "Zhey said it's been veady for bout half und owver. Vut zhey are still vaiting for Hinkel to veturn from zer Soaring Eagle hotel."

"Vhat?" SS-19's demanded.

"Vhen zhey told eem the modifications vould take about two owvers, Hinkel vanted a drink vhile he vaited." Was Gerd's response.

"All zer vay at zer other end of zer city?"

"He asked owver engineers at Happy Cars for zer best lager und vhisky een Colorado." Gerd shrugged which caused SS-19 to tilt the brim of her cartwheel hat down slightly as she tried to comprehend the stupidity.

"Oh yeah." Lorenc nodded scratching his greasy hair with even greasier fingers. "Hinkels' a real booze snob. Won't touch anything that's not imported."

The big man immediately jumped as SS-19's cartwheel hat spun like a black disc back to him though she appeared simply to be switching her attention.

"I…I heard the Soaring Eagle's bar has the best stuff in town." Lorenc stammered and shrugged while spreading his big arms out to the side.

SS-19 turned her head slightly looking at neither of them and a breathless curse escaped her veil.

"Zhat alcoholisch dummkopf! He vill jeopardize zer entire or-paration!"

"I could take a few of the boys out, get the distributor and pick Hinkel up from the Eagle." Lorenc offered and again jerked back slightly as SS-19's hat brim turned slightly in his direction though it was simply to acknowledge him while both he and Gerd could hear the popping of tendons and squeaking of leather as her gloved fists clenched at her side.

"Nein. Zhere ees too much at visk alvedy." Turning fully back to Gerd then back to Lorenc, she instructed in turn. "Call zer KAOS agents at zer Happy Cars. Tell zhem to send somevun to go fetch Hinkel.—Lorenc, prepare for plan E-S-Fifteen."

"Gaddit!" Lorenc answered and turned to run back to the men, hollering so loud the echo in the space they were in repeated like somehow shouting in a deep canyon. "ALL RIGHT ALL YOU MAMA-BOYS! PICK UP YOUR SHIT-STAINED DIAPERS AND MOVE YOUR ASSESS! E-S-FIFTEEN!—" as all the men dropped what they were doing with loud clangs of tools and started running about, Lorenc's bellows continued, his eyes flashing with megalomaniacal joy at how the men scuttled about in fear of him. "—MOVE IT! MOVE IT! YOU NEED ME DA SEND YOU ALL AN INVITATION?! YOU ALL WAITING FOR A LAST DRINK OF MILK FROM YOUR MAMA?! GET YOUR USELESS ASSES MOVING BEFORE I SHOVE MY BOOT INTO THEM! YOU ARE ALL THE SORRIEST MOST PATHETIC PIECES OF ANIMAL SHIT I HAVE EVER SEEN! MOVE IIIIIIITTTT!"

"Jawohl!" was Gerd's singular response with a curt nod before turning on his heels and running back to the office.

The interior of the Eyrie – Bar and Grill within the one storey horizontal section of the Soaring Eagle's L shaped form was an elegant portrait of varnished dark wooden elegance. The material comprised the floor, walls, pillars and ceiling with small chandeliers casting a cosy glow over the occupants against the wintery landscape outside. It's front entrance at the Northern side of the hotel, faced the hotel's main car park, West Hampden Avenue and beyond that the constantly busy US Highway 285.

Entering via the front entrance, customers passed through a carpeted antechamber before going through a door into the varnished dark wood floors of the bar proper. The entire bar was wider than it was long. The L shaped bar counter occupied it's south eastern corner with the horizontal portion of the L connecting at the east wall and after 4 feet or so curved smoothly into the 9 ft vertical section of the L that ended just 5 feet from the southern wall. High bar stools lined it while over a dozen dark wood tables and chairs were set over the main floor, some with expensive exotic looking rugs under them.

A wide entrance in the centre of the southern wall led to the hotel's lobby. Surprisingly at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, a large number of the tables were already occupied, mostly by guests of the hotel in a range of dress from business suits to casual holiday wear. Their whispered conversations combined to raise a low murmur over the entire establishment and a haze of cigarette and cigar smoke hung near the chandeliers creating a colourful vaporous infusion.

Secure at a discreet table shrouded in the shadows in a corner and blocked from viewers at the bar by various other occupied tables, Max and 99 watched their quarry and colleague carefully.

There were a few occupants at the lower end of the bar counter at the horizontal part of the L, but Max and 99 watched the 2 occupants at the end of the vertical L section close to the south wall.

Hinkel sat with his back turned to them. He was an inch or two below 6 ft and though he was only a few years short of 50, his shoulders were still square and broad with a deep chest which his black suit and tie did not hide. Even at this distance, Max and 99 could make out his hair which was still light blond with barely a touch of grey, slit back neatly and held by some form of hair gel, revealing a straight hairline. His eyes below his steep forehead, were a pale yet glittering blue. These features, with his aquiline nose, distinctive cheek bones, square jaw and sharp chin must have made him the perfect poster boy for the Nazi regime in his youth.

Even 99 had to admit Hinkel was a dashing, striking man. But despite his good looks, his pitiless expressions and predatory blue eyes made her fear for Lorie who was now cosying up to him on the next stool.

Lorie's hair was combed and remained in a simple pony tail. She had changed into a non-descript baggy brown polyester turtle neck sweater which nonetheless, still revealed the soft curves of her breasts sufficiently at least to catch Max's attention, and a below knee length beige flare skirt with black stockings and calf high black go-go boots. Some light simple lipstick had transformed her into a visually sensual beacon which had caught Hinkel's attention immediately when she walked past him a few minutes ago where he sat at one of the tables. He had moved immediately to sit with her and she seemingly had his undivided attention.

For once, 99's jealousy over the way Max was looking dreamily at another woman's chest and curves was overridden by her concern for Lorie. Right now, as Lorie sat with her elbows on the bar and her legs crossed comfortably, shoulder to shoulder with Hinkel on her left, from the corner that Max and 99 were secluded in, 99 could see clearly that the KAOS agent already had his thick, gnarled yet strong right hand on the young agent's left knee which was crossed over her right.

Hinkel leaned towards her, making Lorie close her eyes and turn her head to her left as he seemingly whispered something in her left ear. 99 could see Lorie pretend to laugh softly, her lean shoulders moving in her sweater. 99 barely stifled a gasp as she saw Hinkel's hand tightened on Lorie's knee and moved several inches up her thigh, pushing her skirt away.

"Max, I'm really worried!" 99 whispered.

"She seems to be doing okay." Max replied dreamily as ever, smirking at the KAOS agent's advancements.

"Max! You're focusing on the wrong thing!"

"I'm focusing on the same thing Hinkel is so that means, Lorie is doing GREAT!" Max smirked not taking his eyes off Lorie and the KAOS agent's hand on her thigh.

"She's terrified Max!" 99 whispered. "I can tell! I hope she doesn't try to slip the pill into his drink now. He's testing her. He's watching her hand as he talks into her ear!"

"Well don't worry Ninety-Nine." Max nodded. "You keep an eye on her hands and ears and I'll take care of…well…the rest of her."

"Oooh Lorie! Not now!" 99 whispered to herself, pressing a clenched fist to her lips.

Lorie was cringing inside at Hinkel's hand which was now at least 4 inches above her knee as the KAOS agent's lips whispered into her left ear. Her hands were on the bar, the left one, just inches from Hinkel's glass of single grain whiskey on the rocks. She made herself giggle softly at Hinkel's hot whiskey laced breath, breathing words into her left ear and she forced her thighs not to jerk away as she felt his hand kneading her lower quadriceps. Then, she turned her face towards him, brushing her cheek against his face and lips till for a moment, his aquiline nose, watery cold blue eyes and chiselled visage filled her vision before she herself leaned forward now smiling and pressed her left cheek to his and turned, forcing him to turn his face to his right away from the bar.

"Tell me, Rudolf." Lorie breathed into his ear, the whiskey from his pores filling her nose. "What brings a businessman like you into a bar at this time of the afternoon?"

Hinkel chuckled dryly and his hand rubbed even further up her thigh now going under her skirt and Lorie realized the stockings she wore wasn't as much of a tactile defence as she had hoped and she just managed to stabilize her left hand long enough to raise it over his glass, flick the turquoise on her ring to open it up, revealing the hidden compartment inside and the Contradiction pill dropped out into the whisky.

"It's certainly not business." Lorie whispered hoping to drown out the sizzling as the effervescent pill dissolved—Smart had not warned her it would be this loud.

Lorie for the first time was relieved at the unrelenting hand on her thigh and she could feel his kneading, groping fingertips sinking into her hard muscle now, threatening to tear the stocking, which she hoped meant he had not noticed what she just did.

"She's done it Max!" 99 whispered at their corner table. "I don't think he saw her put the pill in his drink."

"So far so good Ninety-Nine." Max noted as he took a sip of his gin. "We got ourselves a lucky hand—and so does Hinkel."

99 couldn't stop the scowl in her throat as she glared sideways at Max.

"How zu you know eet eez not for bizness?" Hinkel asked leaning back his left elbow on the bar counter while he kept his right hand gripped to her thigh like the name sake of the hotel would on a rabbit it caught. "I may hav just finished eet und chose to stay for zer good vhiskey."

He lifted his glass in his left hand to emphasize it and Lorie smiled cursing inside when he set it down again without drinking.

"Do vee share ser same appreciations?" Hinkel asked tilting back his head and jutted his sharp chin slowly at her. "Or zu YOU have some ulterior motive?"

"Can't a girl take time out from a quiet afternoon for a drink too?" Lorie asked with a tilt of one shoulder.

"So biznezz iz shlow at zer Berliner shop?" Hinkel asked with his eyes locked on Lorie's features while his palm rubbing relentlessly into her stony quadriceps under her skirt.

"The WHAT shop?" Lorie leaned forward curiously, managing to remember to seem ignorant while hiding the churning of her stomach at his marauding hand.

"Ah, my apologeez." Hinkel smiled tapping a finger to his hard forehead. "Old habits. I mean…uh…doughnut shop—'Berliners' een zum parts of Germany."

"Oh!" Lorie laughed as she raised her sherry to her lips. "Well, I don't know how it is in Germany, but around here—it's not the most glamorous profession."

"Zhen vhy do you verk zhere?" Hinkel queried, his cold eyes never ceasing to scan her face.

"We all do what we need to get by." Lorie shrugged, forcing herself to meet his scrutinizing gaze and fight back the retching sensation which threatened to escape her throat as his fingers squeezed and grinded his palm into her thigh, inching higher. "Just temporary. Saving up for community college."

"Und vhat vould you study zhere? Ah! Modelling! Cozmetology?"

"You're not very subtle are you?" Lorie smirked praying that he would drink as she felt his big hand rub even higher on her thigh nearly reaching her groin and pushing her skirt back so far she was afraid the attentions of other patrons would be pulled towards her increasingly exposed, stockinged thighs.

"I don't know vhat that means." Hinkel smiled as he lifted his glass finally and Lorie forced herself not to exhale with relief as he effortlessly put away the 4 fingers of whiskey in it in one smooth tilt before placing it down and raising his hand and signalling with his fingers without turning.

"Und I don't zink you are zer subtle type eezer." Hinkel noted, his hand pushing Lorie's skirt nearly to her hip, rubbing the palm back and forth across her thigh, nearing the top, more vigorously by the second now as his shoulder leaned even further into her's.

Lorie was amazed she had not projectile vomited by now as his fingers slid inwards from her quadriceps to dig into her inner thigh just inches from the bulge of her mons venus, threatening to pull her crossed legs apart—it wasn't as though he was unattractive or repulsive in appearance. He was indeed a dashing man at 47 years old. But the heat of his hand simply contrasted with the pitiless frost in his eyes of a narcissist, devoid of empathy or concern about the rights of others. Even as Lorie smiled back alluringly, the waiter, dressed in black pants, white shirt and black tie, topped with a smart black vest walked up.

Lorie noted with unease that the waiter, a skinny man in his late twenties with a thin moustache and dark hair cut with a side parting and quiff, was visibly sweating despite the cool temperature of the bar and as he poured the whiskey from the crystal decanter he held to refill Hinkel's glass, his hand was shaking so hard the liquid sloshed as it hit the bottom of the glass.

When the bartender finished pouring and struggled to replace the stopper on the decanter with a clatter due to his shaking hands, Hinkel's left hand whipped up without looking away from Lorie or even moving his shoulder at all, to actually grab the waiter's left ear.

Lorie would have jumped off her stool if Hinkel's right hand was not keeping her thigh imprisoned in an iron grip. The waiter's eyes squeezed shut and he whimpered and squealed as Hinkel yanked him by the ear towards him, slamming the thin man's chest ribs against the edge of the bar counter bending him forward over it, nearly lifting his shoes off the floor behind the bar—at the same time, the decanter's stopper flew out of the bartender's left hand and arched through the air between Hinkel and Lorie's face at ear level.

Even as Lorie's heart pounded inside her breast while her left arm whipped out behind her to catch the stopper before it flew into the crowded tables, she was amazed at how the bartender still kept his grip on the decanter's neck and managed to rest it on the bar counter top even as he was being assaulted.

Without even turning to look at the bartender shaking, whimpering bartender's agonized, sweating face, Hinkel scowled in a blood curdling low tone.

"Vhat did I TELL you boy? ONLY use the actual bottle vhen you pour for me."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry s…s…sir!" the bartender whimpered, tears streaming from his eyes and Lorie realized other patrons were actually looking over but of course no one dared intervene.

"That's just a complete misuse of multitasking." A raven haired young woman in a yellow dress remarked to her male companion.

"Jack—" a heavyset business man remarked to his friend sitting opposite him drinking a heavy scotch. "—even if the joint-venture fails and we end up on the unemployment line—remind me not da put down 'bartending' on my job preferences."

"If I find out—" Hinkel continued, his eyes still locked on Lorie. "—zhat you gave me vatered down imitations, I come behind zer bar und I TEAR off your STRUDEL! Zu u understand boy?"

"Y…Y…Y…YES Sir! Yes! Yes!" the bartender cried and Lorie thought Hinkel was actually going to tear his ear off.

"Go cry to your mama now."

With these final words Hinkel shoved outwards with his hand, releasing his grip, sending the bartender crashing against the shelves of drinks behind the bar. A few tipped over but the bartender made a valiant effort, twisting about to grab at them in shaking hands and managed to stop all from falling.

Hinkel sighed as he picked up his drink again while the bartender regained managed to control his hyperventilating and even remembered to reclaim the stopper from Lorie's proffered hand before hobbling off, hand on his injured ear.

"Just because you vin a vor doesn't mean you should compromise on standards." he remarked as he drank again while Lorie forced herself to smile.

"Since we've both agreed that subtlety is lost on both of us." She said before putting her glass to her lips to finish off the sherry. "I'll go get us a room."

With that, she turned away from him and thankfully she felt his hand rake off her thigh without invading deeper and drew back out so she could casually brush her skirt back over her thigh. As she slid off the bar stool and her boots touched the varnished dark wood of the floor, Hinkel raised his glass saying.

"I don't know about zhat. Zhis ees very gut single grain vhiskey. Vhat can I get een zer room zhats better?"

Taking her purse from the counter, Lorie stepped towards him and leaned in breathing into his ear.

"If you have to ask, then I've just wasted the last twenty minutes of my afternoon off. Have I?"

With that, Lorie turned and walked out the entrance in the south wall into the lobby with Hinkel's watery blue eyes locked on her departing back and her swaying hips as he drank his whiskey.

"This is it." Max stated. "Let's go wait for em. You got the room number?"

"Yes Max!" 99 confirmed as they both rose from the table.


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

Lorie approached the room CONTROL West had reserved for this mission, leading a smiling Hinkel by the hand. She forced herself not to walk too quickly and hoped everything was already in place.

Reaching the door, she brought out the keys from her purse and as she was inserting it into the lock, she felt Hinkel's big hand sliding around her lean waist while his other hand pulled aside her pony tail and peeled her turtle neck down. Lorie's heart pounded as Hinkel's alcohol infused breath bathed her just before his rough lips mashed into her nape and raked up and down. She forced herself to sigh and grunt her false pleasure as she turned the key and the door knob.

Opening the door, she stepped into the dark room and turned around to face him, smiling as she drew him further in by his left hand still on her waist. Hinkel smiled coldly as he was only capable of as he stepped over the threshold, his right hand reaching for her right hip.

Lorie's thought was whether the trap would be sprung before or after he raked up her skirt and grab her hip. And for the first time in the last half hour, Hinkel not touching her actually turned her blood cold as his right hand instead snatched her purse with her gun in it, out of her left hand, sending it flying into the darkness of the room while his left hand whipped up from her waist to clamp around her throat.

Lorie had no time to gasp or shout before Hinkel exploded into motion, his hand locked around her throat with crushing force while twisting her around to press her back to his big chest and at the same time, the KAOS agent kicked out with his left foot at the open door sending it swinging it fully open and crashing against the wall to the left of the doorway. Only there was no resounding crash of wood against concrete but a loud _thump_ and a strangled _oof._

The light came on in the room and as Hinkel's left arm snaked around Lorie's throat like a steel snake, biceps under his suit squeezing into the sides of her neck, she heard a voice call out to her right.

"Hinkel! Drop it and let her go!"

Lorie pulled hopelessly at Hinkel's arm, struggling to breathe as she looked to her right to see 99 standing a few feet away near the bathroom door, pointing an over-under double barrelled Derringer at the KAOS agent.

A gravelling, rasping laughter emitted from Hinkel and Lorie could feel it vibrating in his throat above her head where he held her in the choke hold. She couldn't see Max until she heard a groan to her left where the door had struck the wall.

The door swung back slowly until it almost closed to reveal Max slumped against the wall where he had been hiding, his 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police in his right hand at his side while his left hand clutched his nose.

Hinkel laughed again as he tightened his arm around Lorie's neck.

"It's over Hinkel! We have agents everywhere!" 99 declared moving towards the centre of the room where the bed was while keeping her Derringer aimed at the KAOS agent.

"If you vere going to shoot me, you vould have done so alveady!" Hinkel rasped as Lorie's eyes squeezed shut while she fought to breathe. "Drop your veapuns or I kill her!"

This made Lorie open her eyes again and swivelled them to the right to see Hinkel's right hand holding what she recognised as a suppressor attached 3 inch barrelled Colt Cobra pointed at her head.

"You know you won't get out of here alive if you do Hinkel!" 99 declared, now facing Hinkel directly about 8 feet away.

The KAOS agent growled eagerly keeping Max in his line of sight.

"Shmart und Agent Ninety-Nein!" Hinkel spat, mad blue eyes flashing between them as he squeezed down on the struggling Lorie's throat. "HA! Zhis shtupik Mädchen had zer veflexes of a schlange und she vas tlying ZO hard not to look in your divection! You ZINK I didn't know zhis vas a trap?! Dummkopf! Schwein! Inkompetent!"

"Hayng! Hayng! Hayng!" came the muffled interjection from Max who stumbled forward towards 99, his left hand still clutching his nose and waving his Colt Official Police carelessly at Hinkel.

Putting his hand down from his bruised nose, Max whined.

"E-NUF with the name calling! Ow!"

"von Graf mentioned you two destloyed ees short vave station." Hinkel chuckled dryly, effortlessly keeping the gasping Lorie in his hold. "Zhat ees vy he asked ME to join zhis mission…to make sure zhat PET of ees deed not VERMASSELN zer mission again!"

"You Reich Main Security Office boys sure love your inter-office trash talk." Max rolled his eyes. "Why don't we cut to the part where you surrender and talk? You know all you KAOS types do in the end."

Hinkels rasping laugh again sent ice down Lorie's spine as spots began swimming in her eyes and her hands slowly slipped from his arm around her throat.

"Vhy vould I do ZHAT vhen I have EVERY advantage!" Hinkel laugh sounded like sand paper. "Und now you two vill DROP your veapuns or I PI-CASSO zer vall vith zhis shtupik mädchen's BRAINS! VUN! TWO!.."

"Hold on." Max said raising his hand. "Why aren't you talking with an American accent in the bar?"

"Vhat?!" Hinkel exclaimed, his blue eyes squinting.

"I mean—" Max said tossing his free hand about. "You European KAOS agents love da talk with an American accent and when you switch back to your European accent, and we ask why you're talking with an accent you say—" Max tilted his head side to side, eyes wide, bottom lip protruding as he mimic any of a number of KAOS agents. "—NO! Vevore I speak vith accent! Now I speak RIGHT!"

"I AM speaking vight! Vight now!" Hinkel declared

"Look you gadda get your protocol right." Max shrugged. "I mean, is our accent an accent or is YOUR accent the actual correct accent but is NOT an accent. Make up your mind!"

"I UM TALKING RIGHT! I mean VIGHT!" Hinkel barked "It eez zer vay I—"

And as Hinkel spat and yelled regarding his honoured speech patterns, Lorie, seemingly near unconsciousness, reached with her right hand into the baggy left sleeve of her sweater and emerged with a slender 4 inch stiletto in a reverse grip.

"—MY VAY of talking eez zee VIGHT VAY, UND alvays VILL BE—!"

Lorie's left hand lunged up grabbing the silencer of the Colt Cobra and pushed it out of alignment with her temple while her right fist raised with the stiletto and stabbed, cutting Hinkel's speech off with…

"—AAAAAAAARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH!" went Hinkel as the stiletto's blade sank into the ventral side of his forearm all the way to it's guard, several inches above his wrist.

The KAOS agent's eyes flashed in rage as he howled at the ceiling while Max dashed forward. Hinkel's left arm slipped from Lorie's throat allowing her to turn, placing her right shoulder to his chest and continue pushing his gun off to the side away from Max and 99 while keeping the stiletto buried in his forearm and twisting the gun backwards in Hinkel's hand, wrenching his trigger finger in the trigger guard.

Hinkel's free arm crossed his chest but before he could unleash a backhand at her face, Lorie's right leg swung up and the toe of her boot slammed into his groin. The KAOS agent's blue eyes popped and his cheeks bulged with air trying to escape as he doubled over in pain. And the square butt of Max's Colt Official Police crashed down onto the back of Hinkel's neck, ending the melee.

Lorie dropped onto her knees, still maintaining her grip on the revolver and the stiletto blade buried in his forearm as Hinkel, flopped into an unconscious heap on the floor.

"I've gaddit." Max declared, bending over to carefully pull the Colt Cobra from Hinkel's limp hand.

Lorie finally stood, the blood drenched stiletto still in her hand and suddenly, her knees gave way and she would have fallen if 99's arms had not locked around her waist.

"Over here Lorie." 99 said guiding her on trembling legs to the bed.

"We better get his wound under control so he doesn't bleed out before he talks." Max declared with satisfaction as he rolled the unconscious KAOS agent onto his belly to tug off his sports jacket.

99 sat next to Lorie at the foot of the bed as the girl took in deep breaths.

"Here, I'll hold that for you." 99 offered taking the bloodied stiletto from her to wrap it in a handkerchief before placing it on the bed next to Lorie. "Just breathe ok?"

Lorie took a few deep breaths before gushing with her palm on her forehead and eyes squeezed shut.

"Ooooooh…I'm so sorry!—I was trying so HARD not to look in your direction that I forgot and…and…oh my god! I almost got us all KILLED!"

"You did everything you could." 99 assured as she massaged the girl's neck to calm her down. "You did. Hinkel IS clever and he was suspicious from the beginning."

Lorie let out a slowly steadying breath as she lowered her hand from her forehead as she spoke.

"Just…that poor bartender! I really think he was leaving a trail of pee on the floor as he walked away and ME…I was close to freaking out and running out of…of…" Lorie squinted as she paused looking down at her lap before putting her shaking hands on it to finish her thought. "…thigh."

99 smiled rubbing Lorie's back to comfort her as she assured.

"You recovered well Lorie. You saved us and we got im."

"Though next time, aim more for the muscle instead of the veins." Came Max's input.

"Max!" 99 scolded.

"Hey!" Max declared holding up Hinkel's bleeding forearm. "Just saying we're not KAOS and we can't afford it if the hotel sticks us with the bill da shampoo the carpet!"

With a grunt Hinkel woke, lifting his sharp chin from his big chest. His eyes snapped open into two watery pools as he found himself seated in a sturdy chair, arms immobile. Looking down, he found his sports jacket removed and his wrists were bound to the armrests with strong slender rope. The bloodied right sleeve of his white shirt was rolled up to the elbow revealing a neat firm bandage covering most of his thick forearm. His shins were similarly bound to the front legs of the chair.

"Hhhhmp!" he grunted again, simply noting and accepting his situation and looked up, liquid blue eyes scorching his beady-eyed, big eared, smirking captor who stood a few feet before him with his arms in a cheesy akimbo pose.

"Well!" the CONTROL agent snarked in his irritating nasal voice. "You are now our prisoner! And you're gonna tell us EVERY-thing we wanna know!"

Hinkel looked about him, realising he was near the east wall of the room with the side of the bed about 10 feet in front of him and the work table to his left. Standing behind Max a few steps apart were 99 and the girl who had baited him at the bar.

"Ha!" Hinkel spat at them defiantly. "You vill get NOTHING from me!—" he counted off by extending the fingers one at a time from his left fist. "—I can stand FIRE! FROSTBITE! STARVATION! EXCRUCIATING AGONY! VHAT about you?!"

"I don't mind being a bit peckish—" Max replied pouting while lifting up a hand, palm down, wiggling it as he finished. "—everything else I'm not too fond of."

"Bah! I KNEW it! Low class inferiors!" Hinkel spat at Max's feet and even though he was bound and injured, Lorie found herself requiring some effort to maintain an impassive face. "VEAK! You can vaste all zer time in zer vorld! KAOS will triumph! And your kapitalist lands vill be left in rubble vhere it belongs!"

Max beamed, sniggering smugly as he walked over with absolute poise to the work station to pick up the chair by the top of it's back and carried it over to face Hinkel.

"That's where you're wrong Hinkel." Max declared spinning the chair by it's back in the air to bring it to face the KAOS agent. "We don't…" THUMP! THUMP! KLABUMP!

Max was cut off as the chair spung out of control in the air and landed loudly on it's side on the carpeted floor in front of him. Both 99 and Lorie blinked several times at what just happened while Max stood there, smug grin on his face, his hand right in front of him at abdominal level with nothing in it. He slowly looked down to see the chair on the floor instead.

Then looking slowly back over his shoulder at the staring 99 and Lorie, Max put on a crooked grin and squatted down to pick up the chair with both hands and planted it firmly on it's 4 legs before the captive KAOS agent.

"We don't have to resort to ANY sort of torture to get you to talk." Max declared moving in front of the chair and stated as he sat down. "You see, even though you…" FRUMP!

Again Max was cut off as his butt missed the chair behind him and he continued all the way to the floor till his bottom struck the carpet. Hinkel squinted in perplexity along with Lorie while 99 just took a deep breath.

Grimacing, Max vaulted up to his feet and looking carefully behind him now, sat down, this time on the chair and he continued his confident rhetoric.

"Even though you knew of our trap—while our agent had you distracted at the bar, she slipped CONTROL's latest truth drug into your drink!"

This elicited a predatory growl from Hinkel as he kept testing his bonds, even with his injured arm while his harsh blue eyes burned into the big-eared fool before him.

"All I have to do, is to tell you something which is not true," Max continued. "—and you will IM-MEDIATELY be compelled to contradict me with the TRUTH!"

"HA!" Hinkel threw his head forward as he spat defiantly at his enemy. "I don't believe you! You are LYING!"

"Alright!" Max beamed, leaning back and lifting his right leg to prop his ankle on his left knee…only to lurch forward as his ankle slipped off his knee and he had to put out his hands to balance himself.

Using his hands, Max pulled his ankle onto his knee and pushed it down a few times to make sure it was firm before he smiled confidently again and leaned back in the chair.

"A demonstration! Your favourite colour—is ORANGE!"

"Dummkopf!" Hinkel threw his head back and laughed which made 99's eyes widen into blue moons and Lorie to grip her hands together nervously as the KAOS agent levelled his head again to continue. "My favourite colours are Cherry Blossom Pink and Pansy PURPLE because as silk boxer shorts, they feel smooth and glorious against my skin and brings out my natural radiant GLOW!"

Max's eyes popped wide—along with 99, Lorie—and Hinkel.

The KAOS agent's big chest heaved as he sucked in a deep breath, lips peeled back from gritted teeth.

"Max!" 99 exclaimed, her face lighting up like a star along with Lorie. "It works! The file said Hinkel's favourite colours were red and white because they were the colours of the Schutzstaffel flag!"

Hinkel whimpered and gasped, his eyes large and mad with fear, his lips trembling as he exclaimed.

"YIKES! It veally verks!"

Max grimaced, leaning back in his chair trying to get as far away from Hinkel as he could as he exclaimed.

"Did it have to work—THAT well?"

"Max, keep going!" 99 encouraged.

"Alright!" Max sat up, putting both feet on the ground and leaned forward with his hands on his knees. "As a member of the Lily…the Leftstanding…the…the Leiloo SS Adolf Hitler…"

"Vhat?!" Hinkel exclaimed with dropped jaw and squinting perplexity.

"The Leibstandarte-SS-Adolf Hitler!" 99 and Lorie chorused with gesticulating hands.

"That!" Max declared pointing a finger back over his shoulder at the two women. "You were awarded both classes of the Order of the Iron Cross, the silver, gold and gold with diamonds of the Order of the German Cross AND the Order Of The Knight's Cross Of The Iron Cross along with a promotion to Obersturmführer or First Lieutenant, for single-handedly defeating, forty Polish Calvary men and 3 platoons of the Polish Twenty-Eighth Infantry Division on SIX different occasions during the Invasion of Poland!"

"HA!" Hinkel spat at Max, his whimpering façade transformed into sheer arrogance again. "Zhat's shows how SHTUPIK you are! I vas SMARTER zhan zhat! Vhy defeat zer enemy yourself vhen you can just take CREDIT for it! My friends Gunther, Werner, Arthur und ERNST defeated zer enemy! I just made zhem say it vas ME who did eet othervise I vould tell SS-Obergruppenführer Dietrich zhat zhey vere all DATING ees favourite kitty at zer SALON Kitty!"

Immediately upon finishing, Hinkel again gasped long and hard, eyes popping from his sockets as he whimpered.

"Ooooh nooooooo…"

"Hennnh?!" Max squinted exclaiming before asking. "Your commanding officer was dating a girl who worked in a PET shop?"

As Hinkel whimpered and muttered on in horror, looking left and right for an escape, 99 put a hand to her eyes to sigh while Lorie leaned forward slightly to whisper.

"Pssst! Max! The…the Salon Kitty was a high-class brothel in Berlin during World War two, used by Nazi intelligence for espionage and frequented by most members of the S-S elite."

"Oh THAT kinef kitty." Max nodded with wide clear eyes and noted further. "Men of shared passions. Dietrich and Beddington should'ev started their own club."

"Hinkel." 99 spoke. "You became a member of the Reich Main Security Office because Hitler and Heydrich were both impressed by your impressive, albeit false accomplishments during the invasion of Poland."

"NEIN you shtupik little Mädchen!" Hinkel spat and roared, straining against the ropes so hard the chair creaked such that Lorie actually reached behind her to her skirt's waist band where her revolver was. "My farzer vas a RICH businessman, supporter und shnapps buddy of mein Führer! Und most importantly, he knew how to get Eva Braun's favourite imported cosmetics during zer var! So mein Führer told Heydrich to promote me eento zer Reichssicherheitshauptamt! Arrrrrrggghhhh….aaaaahhhhhh!"

From a howl of anguish, Hinkel finally sighed with what seemed relief at the ceiling before he lifted his head and stated with rapid blinking of his watery blue eyes.

"Hey! Zhat felt pretty gut! Who sayz zer truth hurts?" glaring back at Max and the two female agents he snorted. "More! More! Go on! Ask me anything! Anything! Quick!"

99 and Lorie started exchanging nervous glances at this unusual reaction and Max himself was looking on the ground as though he could find some answers as he stammered.

"Eeeeh…ehhhh…okay! Uhhh….in 1941, as a member of the Inland-SD in the Reich Main Security Office, solely through your own investigations, interrogations and a private network of informants which you formed all on your own, you uncovered a cell of dissidents in Germany, working to destabilize the Nazi regime from within and brought them all down in one swift raid!"

"Nein you dummkopf!" Hinkel roared thrusting his upper body forward so hard Lorie and 99 worried he may shatter the chair. "I made up EVERYSING about the investigations, interrogations and informants! I ordered zer raid because zer house belonged to a vich neighbour of mine who vouldn't share his cellar of imported liquor vith me! In one fell swoop, I got enough single-malt vhisky to last me zer entire VAR! HA! Next! Next! Gimme all you got!"

Max turned to 99 and Lorie, his eyes popping in bewilderment.

"Hinkel." 99 again spoke. "You were promoted a second time in Inland SD to Hauptsturmführer

when you personally uncovered a plot by dissident Heer officers to assassinate Hitler AND Heydrich and led the raid personally to capture all the dissident personnel."

"NEIN! NEIN! You air-headed Mädchen! My friend Felix who vas an Obersturmführer as vell vas zer vun who discovered zer plot und uncovered zer conspiracy! I secretly FORGED my signatures on all zer reports und statements he prepared! I zhen told Felix if ee didn't allow me to take part een zer raid, I vould spill zer beans on eem zhat he vas secretly seeing SS-Gruppenführer Otto Ohlendorf's French mistresses een Paris, Lyon UND Marseille und most SERIOUSLY—STEALING Ohlendorf's secret stash of top class Bavarian Doppelbock to drink VITH Ohlendorf's mistresses!—"

99, Lorie and Max stared at the truth spewing Hinkel with growing disbelief as the KAOS agent ranted on.

"—UND during zer vaid, I shot vun of zer Heer officers, took ees Luger und SHOT Felix een zer back THUS taking zer full CREDIT! Und Heydrich vas SO surprised und convinced zhat I vas a genius und a hero zhat he vanted to make me Sturmbannführer by zer following year, but zhen zer dummkopf got himself KILLED een Libeň!"

At this Max rolled his eyes and tossed his hands up into the air while both 99 and Lorie rested their cheek on one palm with shock.

"You got NOTHING! You got NOTHING!" Hinkel taunted them in babying tone. "Vhat else you got?! Vhat else you got! I can take any-thing-you-can-throw! Come one! More! More!"

Max raised a finger looking back at 99 and Lorie as he had an inspiration before turning back to Hinkel to ask.

"Hinkel! We know that, S-S-Nineteen, is really…uuuhhh…" Max looked about him to find some inspiration before tossing his hands up with grimace, giving up all logic and finished. "…Claudine Auger!"

"AHHH! HA! HA! HA!" Hinkel laughed, his blue eyes wide and mad now as he kept jerking against his bonds. "You shtupik, teeny-tiny eye dummkopf! NO VUN knows who S-S-Nineteen ees! No vun has ever seen her FACE except for zer Oberführer und maybe ees driver und butler UDO! Vecause ALL of KAOS knows she ees a KITTY to BOTH of zhem! HA! HA! HA! HA! More! More! Please more!"

Max's beady-eyes bulged to the size of a bullfrog while 99's eyes widened into blue spheres reflecting the light from the ceiling and Lorie held a hand to her lips in shock as Hinkel bounced up and down on his seat against his restraints in what seemed like pure unrestrained exuberance.

"Eeeehh…could…could you maybe elaborate on that…that…" Max asked jabbing with his finger at the air as though the topic could be seen right in front of him. "….eeh…the kitty..part?"

"Max!" 99 scolded "Get the information about the robbery unit!"

"I'm just trying to work up a thorough background here Ninety-Nine!" Max protested half turning in his chair to glare at her.

"Max, there's no time!" 99 exclaimed.

"Alright! Alright!" Max sighed turning back to the bound and euphoric KAOS agent. "Hinkel! S-S-Nineteen and her robbery unit, are now hiding at their secret base of operations in…in…uhhh…in…" Max rolled his eyes before finishing. "…Tulsa, Oklahoma."

"HA! You buffoon! Critten! KOT for brains dummkopf!" Hinkel laughed. "How shtupik can you GET! S-S-Nineteen und zer vest of zer robbery unit are RIGHT here in Colorado under your NOZES een a varehouse at FOUR-TWO-FIVE Virginia Canyon ROAD een Idaho SPRINGS! NEXT!"

"Clear Creek County! West of here." Lorie exclaimed, soft hazel eyes widening to throw back the light in the room.

"Hinkel!" Max demanded, leaning forward with one hand on a knee. "WHERE is the robbery unit's final target?"

Hinkel grimaced at Max with contempt despite sweat pouring down the hard lines of his face.

"It haz to vee a CON-TRA-DICTION! Get your own shtick vight!"

"Uhhh..uuuhh..right! Uhhhh…Hinkel! S-S-Nineteen's final target with the robbery unit, is…uhhh…uuhhh…" Max looked about and finally gazed out the window of the room giving a diagonal view across South Vance Street and pointed. "…THAT Italian restaurant across the street!"

Hinkel rocked back and forth laughing and they all swore they heard the arm rests of the solid oak chair he was sitting on crack and splinter slightly making them all reach for their weapons.

"HAAAAAAAAA! HA! HA! HA! How BIG a dummkopf can you BE?!" the manic KAOS agent guffawed and laughed at his captives. "KAOS alveady OWNS entire CHAINS of Spanish und Portuguesecuisine restaurants from California, North Dakota, Minnesota ALL-ZER-VAY to owver glorious fazerland—South AMERICA! Earning ovar one hundred-tventy MILLION dollars vorth of net income ANNUALLY vith und vith-OUT taxes! Vee haven't had ANY need for zhose Italians since zer VAR! S-S-Nineteen's FINAL target, ees zer DENVER MINT—TONIGHT at TEN after it CLOSES! Aaaaahhhh!"

Hinkel sagged in his chair finally, head hanging back and mouth open at the ceiling, happily exhausted while 99, Lorie and Max gaped in horror at the revelation.

"I can't believe it!" Max exclaimed in utter disbelief. "I just CANT' believe it!—" he leaned forward staring at Hinkel. "—KAOS OWNS a chain of Spanish and Portuguese RESTAURANTS?!"

Lorie stared at the back of Max's head in even greater shock while 99 sighed and rolled her eyes to the ceiling.

Hinkel lifted his head again to nod proudly.

"Ja! Ja! Tventy percent off a whole Cochinillo asado und lamb shtew on Extremadura night vith complimentary Leche frita dessert."

"Are any of these restaurants in the D.C area?" Max queried. "Cause I got a date this weekend and she LOVES her protein and even more, she loves to WORK OFF the fats!"

"Zure, I can set you up!" Hinkel shrugged. "Ve just got a new shipment of Iberian pork sausages straight from Portugal! Eet ees a MUST-TRY azong vith zer lizard shtew!"

"Right! Gimme the address…"

"Max! We have to get this information to the Chief now!" 99 exclaimed hurrying up past Max with her compact. "Lorie quick! Get the whisky!"

"Oh right!" Max declared removing his shoe while saying to Hinkel. "We'll talk more later!"

"Sure! Sure! Und bring more of zhose pills! Zhey are GREAT!" Hinkel laughed up till 99 stopped before him, aiming her compact at his face and pushed a button.

A puff of white gas squirted from a hidden nozzle in the compact, engulfing Hinkel's hard face and immediately, his eyes snapped shut and his heat slumped forward. His snore was already filling the room before Max got the outsole off his shoe and began working the rotary dial.

"So you're sure we've covered all grounds from Pitkin County to Lake, Park, Tell and El Paso?" the Chief asked pointing with a pen at a map of Colorado on the wall in the CONTROL West secret HQ office.

"That's right." Porter nodded. "Every warehouse, garage, shack. Nothing. We've still got more ground da cover but we're short on manpower."

"I hope Max and Ninety-Nine are having more luck at Jefferson." The Chief declared rubbing his forehead. "We're simply not getting anywhere…"

The ringing of the slot machine phone interrupted him and both of them walked quickly over to the device. Dropping in a quarter, the Chief yanked the knob on top of the lever. This time, the 3 reels of the slot machine spund and stopped to display the symbols of a tear-gas pen, the word KAOS and the world CONTROL which stopped the ringing allowing the Chief to pull out the handle at the base with it's trailing wire.

"This is the Chief."

"Chief." Max spoke into his shoe phone from where he still sat in the same chair while 99 and Lorie were standing over the unconscious Hinkel, 99 with a bottle of whiskey and a folded handkerchief which she was soaking with the drink and dabbing Hinkel's slumped face and neck with it along with his hair while Lorie with another similar bottle of scotch was sprinkling the contents onto Hinkel's shirt, tie and down his back inside his shirt. "We've got what we can from Hinkel."

"Well DONE Max!" the Chief's face lit up like a lighthouse beacon. "What did you find out?"

"Other than the fact that our files on KAOS agents need a LOT of work—" Max grimaced. "—we have the location of the robbery unit. S-S-Nineteen is hold up with them right now at a warehouse in Idaho Springs City at Four, Twenty-Five Virginia Canyon Road."

"Four, Twenty-Five Virginia Canyon Road, Idaho Springs!" The Chief repeated. "Porter, get all the CONTROL West agents you can, at least twenty, fully armed in body armour, out to Idaho Springs. And get a chopper for both of us, we'll head out there to meet them!"

"Gaddit Chief!" Porter nodded and rushed out, barely waiting for the sliding door to open wide enough.

"Alright Max!" the Chief said. "We're on our way to get them. Good work to you, Ninety-Nine and agent O'Neill! Now make sure KAOS doesn't find out we have Hinkel!"

"Right Chief." Max nodded and closed up the mouth piece. "Lorie, you ready for the final act?"

"After all this, should be easy enough." Lorie nodded as she sprinkled scotch over Hinkel's slumped shoulders.

The lobby of The Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa was relatively quiet with various guests resting in the lounge and sitting area on this cold afternoon. The front desk clerk could barely keep his eyes open and wished he could have a glass of that high quality single malt from the Eyrie to perk himself up.

The massive repeated thumping to his left from the central marble staircase to the lounge on the second floor yanked him back to full alert as he looked in that direction. He didn't see anything from his angle at first and then a woman's scream pierced the air and almost every guest in the lobby twisted in their seats in the direction of it's origin or launched to their feet to look.

The front desk clerk ran out from behind the counter towards the stair case and upon arriving at the bottom, half way up the stairs, he saw a big shouldered, barrel chested man in a black suit sprawled on his back on it, his feet pointing up towards the top of the stairs while his head and tangled arms pointed towards the lobby. His light blond hair which must usually be well kept and slit back was now a tangled flop over the steps his head rested on. An attractive young girl with long brunette hair in a polyester turtle neck sweater and beige flair skirt with black boots was half kneeling half sitting on the staircase cradling the man's head.

"Heeelp! Heeeelllp! Please someone help!" she cried

The desk clerk was vaulting up the stairs and right behind him came the front desk manager.

"Ma'am! Ma'am! What happened?!" the manager asked crouching by the man's head and feeling for a pulse desperately praying he wasn't dead on hotel grounds.

"He…he…he fell!" the woman cried, her hands on her face. "I…I TOLD him not to DRINK so much but he wouldn't LISTEN! Oh my god! Is…is he dead?!"

"No, he's still breathing!" the desk clerk declared pointing at the compressions the big chest was still making and then both he and the manager had to turn their face away from the stench of booze.

"I'll…I'll go call the ambulance." The desk clerk said more to get away from the smell and the manager nodded urgently as the woman continued crying as she stroked the man's forehead.

"Oh Rudolf can you hear me?! Please wake up Rudolf!"

Getting back to the front desk, the desk clerk took a deep breath to clear his nostrils of the lingering alcohol stench as he dialled the number.

"Hello? Hello operator?"

Near the Soaring Eagle Inn and Spat, high up on a utility pole, a man in a telephone company overall near the top on the uniformly spaced brackets used as hand and foot holds. The main switch box was opened and the man had a special large telephone receiver to his ear with various wires trailing into the switch box and attached via metal crocodile clips.

" _Hello? Hello Operator_?" the voice filtered over the receiver.

"Operator. How may I assist you?" the man asked.

" _I'm calling from the Soaring Eagle Hotel Inn and Spa. A guest has had a fall at the lobby down the stairs! He appears drunk and unconscious. We need an ambulance!"_

"Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa. We are dispatching an ambulance to your location now."

" _Thanks and hurry_!"

"Understood." The man disconnected one of the wires from the circuitry in the box and dialled another number on the rotary dial on the inside of the receiver grip.

"This is Line Blocker to Masquerade One. Come in Masquerade One."

Somewhere in the city, inside a white station wagon type ambulance, the paramedic in the passenger seat picked up the two-way radio and mashed the PTT.

"Masquerade One to Line Blocker, we read you."

"Line Blocker to Masquerade One." Line Blocker spoke into his receiver. "Pigeon is ready for pickup. Please observe standard response time to avoid suspicion."

"Roger that Line Blocker."

"Line Blocker out."

The passenger seat paramedic hung up the two-way and his partner in the driver's seat asked.

"Standard response time. So we got time for one more beer?"

"AND the second half of the game." the other paramedic nodded as they opened their doors to exit the vehicle.

Inside Donny's Doughnut's sometime later, Donny came sweeping out from the end of the counter with a tray laden with coffees, hot chocolate and plates piled high with doughnuts. Hurrying quickly past the few occupied tables, Donny arrived at one in the corner which had a family with 4 kids aged 8 to 11 jumping about on their chairs as their parents tried to control them.

"Here ya go! Doughnuts fresh from…well the display! Who wants em?!" Donny announced.

The kids jumped and cheered as Donny placed the tray down and the husband and wife had to literally hold them back by the collar to keep them from pouncing on the colourful confectionery and hot beverages.

"Sorry, my waitress has the afternoon off." Donny apologised as he distributed the food and drinks.

As he walked back to the counter and left the doughnut vultures to feast, he gazed out the all glass south side of the shop, across South Vance Street to the Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa where an ambulance was now parked right in front of the main-entrance and he could make out the two CONTROL West agent's dressed as paramedics wheel out Hinkel who was securely strapped on a gurney with Lorie apparently distressed over him, following. With a smirk, Donny headed back behind the counter as half eaten doughnuts started to fly at the family's table.

SS-19 stood, black leather gloved hands clasped behind her back, watching through her black veil, the men in their dirty green mechanic's overalls work on their two Kenworth W900s. Both of them had their hoods and fenders all securely in place now and the dozen over men were focusing now on the massive tires of the tractor units and the box trailers. The whirl and hum of the power tools they used to secure the tires continued to roar through their hideout.

As she watched the progress, one of the men with a well-trimmed thick horseshoe moustache came trotting over to her. He was as small as Lorenc was large. His shaggy, course dark brown hair matching his horseshoe moustache was an inch or two below the level of SS-19's cartwheel hat brim and his overalls seemed to hang on him.

He stopped slightly beyond arms-length of her and reported jerking a thumb over his small shoulder.

"We'll have the last of the new tires in place in five minutes. After that, we'll start topping up the tanks so they're full for the operation." The man reported.

SS-19's only movement was a forward tilt of her cartwheeled hat as she spoke without disturbing her veil.

"Gut verk Drapikowski. As you do so, make sure zer armour plating und glass are secure. Zer U.S Mint Police vill be large in number und if anysing goes wrong, zheir firepower vill be formidable."

"You gaddit S-S-Nineteen!" Drapikowski nodded. "Which reminds me, we'll need da get started on those automatic weapons too."

"Excellent." SS-19 nodded approvingly and her hat brim tilted upwards as she continued. "Vee are vell on schedule und vithin reach of…"

"S-S-Nineteen!"

Her hat brim swirled and the black veil rustled against her serge black dress as she turned her head without turning her body, catching in her peripheral vision the approaching forms of Gerd and Kerstin from the direction of the office.

The Chief ran through the forested canyon, his boots crunching in the thick snow. The branches and leaves of the trees were covered in snow and hard rime transforming their surroundings into a crystalline forest right out from the pages of a fairy tale or pictures on post cards. To either side of the Chief, over a dozen more pairs of boots of the agents accompanying him crunched and sent snow spraying. They were all dressed in their suits with titanium/steel alloy bibs over their sports jackets and heavy parka's topping everything else against the cold.

Clutching the Thompson sub-machine gun with a 100 round-drum mag attached, the Chief moved as quickly as he could among the trees with his men following his movements. Due to the speed of their passage, their bodies brushed and crashed through low branches, breaking off the hard rime in explosive glittering plumes which came back down in a glimmering curtain of ice shards. Each man running through the white shower felt icy stings on his face but everyone ignored it.

The Chief finally stopped, crouching low behind a large tree, pogonip sliding down the back of his parka and his armour bib. Immediately in perfect, unspoken coordination, all the men with him mimic his action, crouching or laying belly down behind trees for cover and aiming their sub-machine guns in the same direction.

With his bino-specs, the Chief peered through the white trees. No more than 200 feet ahead, the trees gave way to a clearing and they could see the back of the large warehouse and it's few ancillary buildings to it's right and left. Beyond them was Virginia Canyon Road after which came the other snow drenched side of the forested canyon.

The Chief brought a walkie-talkie from his parka pocket and mashed the PTT.

"Gate Crash Leader to Gate Crash 2-Alpha come in."

Porter with a dozen over similarly dressed and equipped men dashed through the trees and glittering clouds of shattering hard rime caused by their passage along with snow flying from their pounding boots.

Porter stopped at a big oak tree and crouched down with 3 men immediately behind him and the rest of his group fanned out to either side, taking cover similarly. Snow and crystal shards of rime covered his afro as he lifted his own bino-specs to his eyes and hooked the legs behind his ears to look past the tree he hid behind. Less than 100 feet ahead through the trees, the tree line ended to reveal Virginia Canyon Road. Across the road, built on the clearing was the large warehouse and smaller buildings to either side. The 50 feet square double doors of the warehouse faced the road ready to emit it's occupants and whatever vehicles they utilized.

" _Gate Crash Leader to Gate Crash 2-Alpha come in_." came the voice over his walkie-talkie.

Porter raised his walkie-talkie and answered, his misting breath flowing over the device.

"This is Gate Crash 2-Alpha. Gate Crash 2 is in position. We have Wolf Den in sight."

"Has zer Happy Cars agents reported back?" SS-19 queried as her lieutenants approached.

Kerstin's russet knee length jacket dress conformed and outlined her square shoulders and lean waist which flowed out into her powerful hips and as she came to a stop, her sculpted calves and stony quadriceps and hamstrings flexed in machine-oiled precision in their skin coloured stockings.

Her tawny hair was pulled back into a spine length pony tail and her distinctive cheek bones and tapered jawline flexed smoothly as she reported.

"Jawohl. Zhere ees bad news S-S-Nineteen."

This turned SS-19 completely to face them while Drapikowski titled slightly to look past SS-19's taller form at the lieutenants.

"Vhen zer KAOS agent from Happy Cars arrived at zer Zoaring Eagle, he could not find Hinkel at zer bar. So he asked zer bartender." Kerstin explained. "It seems, Hinkel had a great deal to drink, made advances to a young girl und zhey then vent upstairs—"

As they listened to the report, Drapikowski wondered why there was some sort of distinctive, dull clicking noises and he thought at first something was wrong with the tire installation, only to realise it was coming from in front of him. Gazing at the black void of SS-19's back and following it down to her clasped hands, the KAOS agent's eyes widened, his horseshoe moustache twitching nervously as he saw the woman's black gloved fist tightening and the dull popping of her knuckles and tendons tore through the sounds of the machinery in the warehouse.

"—Zhen about forty-five minutes later, zhere vas an accident. Apparently, Hinkel vas inebriated und he fell down zer main stairs een zer lobby.—"

"The doors are closed and I don't see any activity or any recent tire tracks outside the door. Over." Porter reported as his breath frosted in the frigid air while he continued observing through his bino-specs.

"Roger Gate Crash 2-Alpha." The Chief replied into his walkie from his hiding spot in the trees behind the warehouse. "Gate Crash One will move in on my mark. Stand by to intercept as they'll attempt to escape out the sides and towards the road in your direction."

"—An ambulance vas called." Kerstin continued her report. "Hinkel vas taken unconscious to zer hospital about ten minutes before our agent had arrived. Zer hotel did not know vhich hospital he vas taken to."

"Hinkel, you VEAK-VILLED-schürzenjäger-betrunken!" SS-19 hissed under her veil somehow without any fluttering of the cloth though it was enough to make Drapikowski shake to his boots. "First Němec now Hinkel! Vhy can vee not be RID of zhem!"

The Chief and his men leap-frogged through the trees, each movement sending small bursts of shattered white rime flying off the branches twinkling like star dust as they caught the light. The Chief stopped when he and his group reached the edge of the treeline. He looked to his left and right to ensure at least 3 men were covering the smaller buildings to either side of the main warehouse. Then with a few rapid gloved hand signals, he dashed out from the trees in a final blast of shattering pogonip, Thompson sub-machine gun pressed to his shoulder and aimed at the warehouse rear doors. Following him in a wedge formation were 3 men to either side of him, rime flying off their shoulders and backs, while more agents awaited in the trees, providing cover.

"Boss." Drapikowski stated with a greasy thumb jerked over his narrow shoulder at the men working on the Kenworths. "You want me and a few of the boys da go find Hinkel?"

"Vhat?!"

The exclamation was accompanied by SS-19 spinning around like a black tornado to face him, seemingly without a single movement or change in position of her limbs and Drapikowski twisted away, whimpering, bending his knees slightly and covering his head with his forearms.

"I meant YOU! I meant YOU!" Drapikowski declared front behind his forearms. "YOU'RE the boss! I wasn't talking to Vollmar!"

Gerd gave a barely perceptible cold grunt of contempt at the frightened little man while SS-19 seemed to cluck her tongue impatiently but toned down her voice as she spoke again.

"Vhat are you talking about?"

Peeking past his forearms to ensure no wrath was coming his way, Drapikowski finally lowered them and shrugged.

"Well as you said, we're on schedule. So I could take two of the boys with me and we'll find the hospital he's in."

"Nein!" SS-19's hat brim spun clock and counter-clock wise before tilting downwards as she pondered. "Vee CANNOT spare zer time! Und vee heard zer report. Hinkel ees NO use to zer orparation een hees condition."

"Eeeeeeh…." Drapikowski tilted his shaggy head and twitched his horseshoe moustache. "…actually, I meant—find which hospital he's in and put a few bullets in im."

"Unmöglich!" SS-19's veil shimmered and rustled as she shook her head. "Hinkel ees vun ov zer Oberführer's most highly prized loyalists. Only zer Oberführer or owver KAOS supreme leader can orzer ees death."

"Absolutely Boss!—I mean you." Drapikowski gestured with trembling grease covered hands. "Uuuhhh…But problem. We know CONTROL's gad a file on Hinkel and he KNOWS bout our final job. What if CONTROL West finds him and he talks? Every CONTROL agent and U.S Mint cop in Colorado'll be waiting for us in Denver! We'll be blown da bits!"

"Hinkel ees a loyalist to zer Oberführer." SS-19 answered. "He von't betray us. Not eev he vishes to keep breathing. He vill…"

This time SS-19 stopped herself and spun to face the rear doors at the opposite end of the building's length.

"Vhat ees it?" Gerd asked.

"Some vun ees here." SS-19 stated

Gerd whirled around towards the glass windows of the office at the west wall and yelled.

"Vilson?! Anysing?!"

Inside the office, a lean, dark haired man dressed similarly in dirty green mechanic's overalls, sitting at what appeared to be a console covered in buttons, switches and dials along with a few display screens looked up. His glittering black eyes squinted above his sculpted cheekbones and hard square jaw as he shook his head indicating a negative.

Despite this, Drapikowski's eyes still widened as he fumbled into his overall pocket to draw a silenced snub-nosed S&W Model 10 revolver. He didn't know how but SS-19 now had her Luger-P08 with the integral suppressor, in her right gloved hand as she signalled to them.

"Kerstin. Drapikowski. Take five men, check the front! Gerd get five men, vith me!"

The Chief and his men reached the rear double doors of the warehouse, flattening themselves against it. On a nod from him, the two men closest to him grabbed hold of the handle on the double doors.

Porter and his men at the edge of the tree line with Virginia Canyon Road right in front of them, aimed their weapons from where they crouched or proned behind trees while clouds of pogonip, glittering in the afternoon light settled on them.

"Get ready guys." He said aiming down the barrel of his Thompson sub-machine gun at the front entrance of the main warehouse while 3-4 men covered the ancillary buildings to either side.

Kerstin's quadriceps and calves bulged and flexed as she ran, Browning Hi-Power with silencer attached aimed at eye level at the front doors at the north side while Drapikowski and 5 more men in dirty green overalls struggled to keep up with her, armed with silencer attached revolvers, Walther MPLs and F1 submachine guns.

SS-19 reached the rear doors first, her suppressed Luger P-08 aimed at the middle with Gerd behind her, silencer attached Walther P1 aimed in the same direction followed by 5 men armed with Walther MPLs and Beretta M12 submachine guns with 32 round magazines.

SS-19 nodded and 2 of the men ran forward taking hold of the door handles.

The CONTROL agents yanked the doors wide, running to pull them wide open and before they were fully apart, the other agents on either side swarmed in with the Chief charging into the gloom right in the centre.

SS-19 charged out into the bitter cold, a black void against a world of white, her Luger's integral suppressor barrel leading the way while Gerd and the rest of the men charged out on either side of her, Walther P1 and submachine guns swinging about and searching.

The Chief ran nearly 50 feet before he stopped at the head of the spear point of men to either side of him searching the interior of the warehouse with their Thompson submachine gun muzzles. They fanned out to the sides, searching and scanning every inch of visible space in the warehouse as they fanned out to the sides.

The Chief lowered his submachine gun as he looked about the massive interior of the warehouse and again, in one of the few times in his life, even without Max around, he squeezed his eyes shut and put a finger and thumb up to his face to squeeze the bridge of his nose to ease the migraine that was pounding to life in his head.

SS-19 scanned the landscape around her as snow began turning the shoulders of her dress white along with her hat.

"S-S-Nineteen! Zhere ees no vun out here." Gerd reported walking over just as Kerstin emerged from the rear door.

"No vun out front eezer S-S-Nineteen!" She announced.

SS-19 finally lowered her Luger but she remained where she was, scanning with hidden eyes behind her veil looking in every direction. Even though the freezing cold wrapped her in an increasingly bitter embrace, she remained scanning, even as the relentless frost invaded the meagre defences of her stockings and dress. Despite this, her limbs remained tense and alert as she kept looking about.

It seemed like an eternity before she finally said.

"Very vell. Inside."

Gerd signalled the men who happily ran back in through the door of the massive barn which now served as their new hideout. To either side of the main building were several dilapidated cabins. And while there was still forests around them, instead of a canyon, beyond them, huge snow covered mountains rose to the Colorado sky.

As the last of her personnel retreated into the warmth of the barn, SS-19 finally turned and began trudging back, ignoring the icy bite of snow inside her shoes.

SS-19's departing back shrank within the field of vision of the telephoto lens. It followed her as she approached the barn doorway, snapping photo after photo. Seemingly for no reason, just as she was about to disappear into the gloom, she stopped again and turned, her veil again scrutinizing the surroundings. The lens focused closer on her snapping a photo or two. For a moment, it seemed she actually looked right at the camera though the observer knew it was impossible for any human to see him.

Finally, she turned again and disappeared into the darkness of the barn and the large doors swung closed pushed by her subordinates.

Seated among the trees in the distance near the top of a hill, the observer crouched in between two trees, lowered his camera with the forearm length telephoto lens, to reveal a face of wide cheekbones, narrow jaw and even upper lip swathed in a grey goatee and moustache. But most of all, his dark eyes which glinted with intelligence continued to survey the target now barely visible in the distance. The observer was wrapped in a long white parka to blend in with the surroundings with the white hood pulled tight over his head. Satisfied, he got up and walked back into the trees to make his way down the hill.

"We're filling the tanks now." Drapikowski with gun still in hand and still shivering reported as SS-19 marched towards them, the snow on her already falling away or melting seemingly without any effect on her.

"Gut." SS-19 nodded as she stopped before him. "Vunce zhat ees done, prepare plan E-D-Forty."

Drapikowski's eyebrows rose.

"More precautions huh?"

"Cannot be too careful." Was SS-19's hushed reply.

"With Hinkel compromised, precaution E-S-Fifteen's working out great for us." Drapikowski shrugged. "Moving us from Idaho Springs da here. E-D-Forty it is!"

"I still say—" this from Gerd who stopped behind SS-19 with Kerstin. "—vee should have left a few hundred pounds of C-Four back at zer varehouze een Idaho Springs for CONTROL. Take out tventy, forty of zhere CONTROL Vest agents. CRIPPLE zheir ability to confront uz."

SS-19's veil turned from Drapikowski without turning her body to speak over her shoulder.

"An explosion zhat size vould cause a panic und likely draw in Federal und State authorities. Vee von't get TEN miles of zer Mint vith law enforcement een every county, city und town from Clear Creek to Denver on high alert."

Gerd shrugged his sleek deltoids in his double-breasted jacket as he stated nonchalantly.

"Vee can bring C-Four for zhem too eef zhey feel left out."


	7. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

"I don't believe it." the Chief declared shaking his head before repeating with greater force as he tossed his hands up as he paced the carpet. "I just DON'T—BELIEVE IT!"

Max, 99 and Porter watched their superior's endless pacing the living room of a CONTROL West safe house on West Green Mountain Drive. The main windows of the house's front, faced westwards looking out at Green Mountain Circle while the southern end of the house pointed at W Green Mountain Drive, both of them covered under several inches of snow which continued to drift down.

Max stood in the middle of the room with his dark blue woollen sports jacket off and his shoulder holster with his 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police on over his light blue shirt as he smoked a cigarette while 99 sat on a sofa with it's back towards the west windows, her slender, lean thighs crossed in her scarlet, plaid flare skirt, gray leather booted toe pointing at an angle on her raised leg while her slender neck leaned gracefully forward with attention in her light gray turtle neck sweater. Porter in his light gray suit and dark tie, all still rumpled from the failed raid in Clear Creek, sat in an arm chair perpendicular to the sofa, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

"AGAIN and AGAIN—KAOS is TWO steps ahead of us!" the Chief exclaimed, both hands before him, finger tips just inches from each other as he tries to literally grasp the problems while pacing in his suit of bluish gray tweed sports jacket, black pants and brown and black striped tie. "The warehouse was DESERTED!"

"But I don't understand Chief." 99 asked with delicate eyebrows and brow creased, her light hands resting on her knee. "Didn't the Contradiction Pill work? Was Hinkel somehow lying?"

"Oh no Ninety-Nine." The Chief stopped his packing to answer, facing the three of them. "They did work."

"Our lab boys took a blood sample from im in our holding cell." Porter confirmed. "His system's STILL saturated with the drug TWO hours later. We can't STOP im from talking, even now!—" Porter shrugged with a pouted lip. "—last I checked with our interrogation team, Hinkel admitted he joined the Waffen SS as a means of over-compensation for his loss of masculinity cause' his little sister kept beating him up from age eight to ten and forced him da walk around in front of his friends with ribbons tied into his hair."

While 99's blue eyes widened at this revelation, Max with cigarette in one hand and the other on his hip, nodded knowingly stating.

"A man locked in a crisis of fashion sense."

"Also, we've managed to verify some of his rantings you told us about." The Chief explained with a raised finger. "I've asked our agents in Washington to keep an eye on some of the more prominent Spanish and Portuguese restaurant chains and already, they've spotted some of them being frequented by known KAOS agents! And if that's not enough, I've had Intelligence section look through records of the Reich Main Security Office that we managed to obtain after the war.—" the Chief's eyes narrowed in focus as he spoke on with a hand raised and index finger tip touched to the thumb in concentration. "—It seems what Hinkel said about the raid on the Heer officers plotting to assassinate Hitler was true. We found investigation reports, statements and surveillance photos prepared and dated between November 1941 to April of 1942 involving about ten officers in total—not just of the Heer but also the Kriegsmarine. This culminated in a raid in early May 1942 of a mansion in the Bavarian Alps which the group used as a meeting place. And during the raid, a— Obersturmführer Felix Lammers was shot in the back by one of the conspirators, who was in turn shot by Hinkel. All the conspirators who survived the raid were summarily executed of course. Upon examination by our Forgery Section, we detected numerous signs of tampering on all the statements and reports prior to the raid which the R-S-H-A failed to, especially regarding Hinkel's signatures on them. The ONLY report that seemed free of any forgery, was the report following the end of the raid which was probably the ONLY report that Hinkel wrote himself. All this points to the fact that the Contradiction Pill worked perfectly."

"Plus, the robbery unit had DEFINITELY been at that warehouse in Idaho Springs." Porter added. "We found over thirty, two hundred eighty-five inch tires in there along with tire tracks and over a gallon of fuel on the floor."

"And it looks like they were retrofitting the Kenworths they purchased from Buckman's Auto-Deals." The Chief confirmed. "S-S-Nineteen must have gotten wind of Hinkel's "accident", became suspicious and moved her unit to another hideout."

"Any leads on where they are Chief?" Max asked gesturing with his cigarette hand.

"Nothing yet." The Chief replied. "We have CONTROL West, the highway patrols and every police department in Colorado looking but, there's no sign of them. They've probably changed the license plates and appearance of their trucks by now and the roads are FULL of W-Nine Hundreds."

"What about Hinkel?" 99 suggested. "I mean, if he's still under the influence of the contradiction pill we could get him to tell us where their new hideout is."

"We tried that." Porter reported spreading his hands with elbows still on his knees. "He doesn't know."

"Which fits with what KAOS agents Galbraith and Blair from the National Museum said about S-S-Nineteen's pattern." the Chief confirmed. "She, Vollmar and Kerstin would be the only ones who knew where their next base of operations would be so none of their men could compromise them if caught. I'm afraid we are out of options. We have only one advantage over KAOS right now."

"That's right. Hinkel gave us their final target." Porter affirmed.

"We HAVE to set a trap for them and wait for them to strike!" the Chief drew in a deep breath while looking up at the ceiling and shaking his head at the prospect. "The Denver MINT! Heavens! This is it! No one has ever successfully robbed it since Nineteen-Twenty TWO! And I doubt KAOS intends to simply ROB one of it's delivery trucks! If KAOS succeeds in this, CONTROL is FINISHED! The president will shut us down for SURE!"

While 99 breathed out and rested her head in her slender hand and Porter shook his head in equal dismay, Max nodded in deep thought, as he pondered out loud.

"Yeeees! It's inspired! Absolutely ingenious and diabolical!—" he looked up, eyes wide as he declared. "—can you IMAGINE?! If KAOS pulls this off, why, they'd be UNSTOPPABLE!—"

The Chief grunted and nodded his head feverishly in agreement as Max continued.

"—Why, KAOS would be able to achieve something no AMERICAN individual or organisation has ever accomplished!"

"What's that Max?" 99 queried lifting her head from her hand quizzically.

"Absolute freedom from AT& T!—"

The Chief sighed closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose while Porter gaped in astonishment and 99 gave a smirk and rolled her eyes sideways as Max continued his analysis.

"—I mean THINK about it! With all those nickels, dimes and quarters from the mint, they'll be able da make all the long distance calls they want for the next TEN years! They could coordinate their operations all over the world and there'd be nothing to STOP them! In a single phone call they could discuss and coordinate their entire operation AND still leave time da finalize their annual dances!" Max declared, eyes wide with concern as he waved his cigarette holding hand.

"NO MAX! NOT-the-COINS!—" the Chief hollered shaking his convulsing hands at Max and causing his subordinate to shrink back slightly with a sheepish grimace. "—Gold! Silver! Like all mints, the Denver facility holds large amounts of gold and silver! I just checked with the Director of the United States Mint! At the moment, the Denver Mint has almost FOUR hundred million dollars of gold and silver bullion in it's vaults!"

"That would explain their need for the semi-trucks." 99 noted.

"That's right." The Chief nodded, returned to sanity as usual by 99's modulated logical tones and he continued decisively, pointing at them in turn as he explained. "Now, this is what we'll do. It's just past three PM now. We're already coordinating with the Mint Police at the Denver Mint. We've been sneaking CONTROL West agents into the facility, disguised in Mint Police uniforms in their squad cars so as not to alert KAOS in case they have look outs there. Porter, you and I will drive up to Denver now. Our agents should all be in place by the time we get there and the antidote to Super Sleep distributed to the Mint Police as well. Max and Ninety-Nine, with every available agent from CONTROL West at the Denver Mint, I'll need the two of you to finish interrogating Hinkel. Get all the information you can about the mint heist itself—how they plan to infiltrate the mint, where their advance team will be—all the details so that we'll be ready for them. At the same time, keep in contact with the police in case they spot the two Kenworths so we can monitor them up till the time they strike."

"What about our secret headquarters in Phoenix and Los Angeles?" Max inquired.

"Yeah, couldn't we get more help from them?" Porter put in, his dark face etched with concern.

"No, I'm not going to make the same mistake as I did in Washington!" The Chief explained and shook a finger as he continued. "KAOS is exceedingly clever and they may have some ruse that we're not seeing. I've ordered all our agents in our secret headquarters, including Washington, to remain on Magenta alert. They've placed all high priority targets like Federal Reserve Banks, museums, mints, diamond exhibitions and so forth under surveillance and ready to respond, fully armed at a moment's notice. KAOS won't slip one past us this time. Now Max and Ninety-Nine, once you get everything you can from Hinkel, join us at the Denver Mint before KAOS strikes"

"Right Chief." Max nodded for everyone.

99 and Porter were on their feet and Max had just retrieved his dark blue woollen sports jacket from the back of a chair when a phone ringing stopped them. They all looked about for a moment and Porter walked over to the east wall where a telephone rested on an end table with a lamp next to an armchair. As the ringing continued, Porter took hold of the conical lamp shade and lifted it up, revealing a wire trailing out of the inside. Putting the huge conical shaped device to his ear, basically covering the entire left side of his face, he bent forward and spoke into the light bulb of the lamp.

"Hello?"

The ringing continued however and Porter looked up puzzled.

"It's not this phone."

"How about the other one?" 99 suggested pointing with a slender finger as she shrugged into her dark blue gold buttoned jacket.

"Oh!" Porter nodded in realisation as he replaced the lampshade before picking up—the entire phone—and placing it down on the floor. He then took hold of the end table and turned it over to rest it on the floor on it's top before taking hold of two of it's slender legs and pulling on them. Both legs detached from the table, each with a wire running from it at the other end. Porter placed the tip of one leg to his ear and spoke into the other table leg.

"Hello?"

The ringing continued unabated and Porter rolled his eyes up at the ceiling in frustration.

"What if it's the actual phone?" 99 suggested buttoning her jacket.

"That?" Porter inquired pointing with a table leg at the phone-phone on the floor. "That's the lamp. When you dial the right combination it lights up."

"Oh I'd like da see that!" Max said leaning forward his eyes wide and curious.

"Max, I think it's your shoe." The Chief pointed.

"I know it is." Max grumbled.

"Then WHY are you not answering it?!" Porter exclaimed tossing his hands with the table legs in the air.

"I've been walking in nothing but snow for five DAYS! My shoe phone's so cold every time I use it my EARS get frostbite! They're BOTH still THAWING OUT!" Max snapped making 99 give him a crooked smile and sideways eye roll.

"Max!" the Chief shouted. "It could be the Washington office calling!"

"Alright! Alright!" Max grumbled sitting down on the couch and removing his right shoe to twist the heel and remove the outsole.

"This is Eighty-Six. Come in CONTROL." Max spoke into the flip out mouthpiece and rolled his eyes, moving a hand towards the frozen circular transmitter against his ear.

In a car somewhere, the man with the grey goatee and moustache sat, now with a plain trench coat belted around his dark suit and tie with a matching fedora atop his grey head. He held a shoe phone as well to his ear and his dark eyes glittered maliciously as he snapped into the mouthpiece in a razor voice.

"It takes you THIS long to realise your shoe was ringing! What kind of buffoon ARE you?!"

"Now just a SECOND!" Max answered while the others around him all frowned in confusion at his unusual response. "Only people I know well can call me a buffoon to my face!"

"Don't waste my time!" the observer snarled into his show phone. "Put your Chief on!"

"Who IS this and how did you get this number?!" Max demanded.

"Tell your Chief, this is Llewellyn R Ancaster." The observer growled. "And if he doesn't want KAOS to make him anymore of a fool than they already have, he'll tell his dim-witted-big-eared-beady-eyed-bumbler-of-a-so-called-AGENT to hand him the shoe phone!"

"Just wait a minute!" Max exclaimed indignantly, eyes popping as the others around him grew increasingly perplexed. "Just WHO are you calling BIG eared and beady-eyed!"

"Max! Who is it?" the Chief asked.

"Llewellyn R Ancaster, Chief."

99 had never seen the Chief so worried and furious at the same time as their superior reached out his hand to Max who promptly handed him the shoe phone.

"Ancaster." The Chief spoke into the phone, his back stiff and his jaw tight. "What is it you want?"

The Chief listened intently and his eyes turned from a focused squint to widened disbelief and finally as he turned his back to the others to continue listening, Porter came back over to Max and 99 at the sofa to ask.

"Whose Llewellyn Ancaster?"

"His name seems familiar." 99 remarked as she watched the Chief, listening intently with head bent.

"Llewellyn R Ancaster." Max repeated the name with his forefinger and thumb on his chin while his beady eyes narrowed as he explained. "It's a name I haven't heard for a long time. He was a former CONTROL agent. For two years while I was in spy school, he was an instructor there along with the Chief—well the Chief wasn't the Chief yet at the time. I don't really know much about him cause a few months after I graduated from spy school, and the Chief here WAS the Chief, Ancaster was fired from CONTROL. Something bout…a foul up on a mission or something."

"Alright everyone! We have a new problem."

Max, 99 and Porter turned back towards their Chief who hurried over, closing the mouthpiece of the shoe phone and handed it back to Max.

"What did Ancaster want Chief?" Max asked as he replaced the outsole and twisted the heel to lock it.

"To sell information." The Chief replied, wringing his hands apprehensively and continued in response to his people's puzzled glances. "As some of you know, after Ancaster was fired from CONTROL, he became a freelance espionage agent and informant for the government. He now claims to have information on where S-S-Nineteen and her men are hiding and he wants sixty-thousand dollars for it!"

"Sixty-Thousand dollars?!" Max exclaimed and the Chief nodded fervently in agreement. "To think he was a CONTROL agent! Where's his PATRIOTISM?! Where's his LOYALTY to the forces of goodness and niceness?!"

"It must have drowned under the flood of Two HUNDRED thousand dollars he earned from the CIA last year for uncovering the Russian spy ring in Philadelphia." The Chief remarked wryly.

"He earned TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS last YEAR?!" Max exclaimed, eyes popping.

"No, just in February."

"That's out-RAGEOUS! That's DISGUSTING! It's an affront to everything good and decent and PURE in this world!" Max declared. "Just one question Chief!"

"What is that Max?"

"Do you know if he's looking for a business partner?"

As 99 sighed and cast a sideways glance at him, the Chief took a deep breath to continue.

"I don't like this at all either!"

"But Chief can he be trusted?" 99 asked with a tilt of her head.

The Chief paced back and forth, clutching and shaking his own fist as he answered.

"I wouldn't trust Ancaster if I had any other choice. I've always suspected he also worked for our enemies as WELL as our allies, but I've never been able to prove it! The man is intelligent, devious, cunning, ruthless and conceited! He believes no one else is smarter than he is! It's because of his arrogance that a whole team of agents were killed in Casablanca, so I fired him! The whole reason why he became a freelance espionage agent is to get rich and get BACK at me for firing him by showing the Pentagon and the White House how much smarter he is!"

"Well he's awfully close on one out of two." Max nodded with a lopsided grin.

"At the rate things are going I have to agree with you on that." The Chief admitted and swiped his hands in opposite directions stating. "If KAOS gets away with one more heist, we're finished!"

"So we're not gonna buy the information from him?" Porter asked

They all looked at their Chief for a moment as the older man stopped pacing, his face twisted in thought and calculations. It took a while before their superior answered.

"We have no choice but to agree. Over the years, Ancaster has built a reputation and ingratiated himself with the CIA, NSA and DEA, for supplying top class intel!—" the Chief paused to toss his hands up helplessly as he gazed at the ceiling and declared. "Even the PRESIDENT thinks highly of him! Which is why he's finally contacted CONTROL now for the first time! He KNOWS we'll have no choice but to accept. With the way things are going, if the president finds out that Ancaster offered information to stop KAOS and I refused to buy it and this thing goes south, he'll brand me as incompetent for sure!"

"Don't worry Chief, we won't let that happen." 99 assured.

"Thank you Ninety-Nine." The Chief nodded gratefully.

"Besides, I think the brand's been on you since the museum job." Max shrugged and nodded.

"Max!" 99 scolded as the Chief scowled at him.

"ANY-way!" the Chief growled through gritted teeth. "This is what we'll do. I'm NOT going to compromise all our plans simply because of Ancaster. Max and 99, you meet with Ancaster, assess and purchase the information he has then report it immediately to me. He wants to meet in one hour at Addenbrooke Park. He'll contact you there. You'll get the cash before Porter and I head off for Denver. But I don't TRUST Ancaster!—" the Chief emphasises shaking a fist. "So I'm giving you and 99 backup. We'll have a few agents we can spare stake out the park. After Ancaster meets you and leaves, we'll have him followed to see where he goes and make sure he isn't holding out on us. So give our agents time to get into place."

"Right Chief." Max nodded. "Ninety-Nine and I'll be waiting at our hotel once we get the cash. When the agents are in place at the park, we'll head over."

Sometime later, Max stood in his hotel room, now changed into a Davy's Gray suit with matching double-breasted vest and a maroon, black and scarlet striped tie, in Lakewood talking on his shoe phone with his sports jacket on the bed while he paced the carpet.

"Right Wyatt! You got the North side covered?...Good! Good! And Speckle's got the south side?...uh huh. Uh huh. And Watermyer is by the Lake in the west?...He WAS by the Lake?...Now he's IN the Lake…I see…living up to his name I suppose. Alright! You boys stay alert and keep me informed. Ninety-Nine and I are on our way now. Eighty-Six out."

Flipping shut the mouthpiece, Max replaced the outsole and locked the heel before putting his shoe back on and calling at the adjoining door.

"Ninety-Nine! The agents are set at Addenbrooke. Time da go!"

"Right Max!" called 99's voice from the other side as Max pulled his sports jacket on over his shoulder holster.

A second later the door opened and 99 stepped through in a navy blue woollen skirt suit of knee length A-line pleated skirt and waist length cropped jacket with 3 large black buttons and three quarter length sleeves, over a turtle neck sky blue and navy blue horizontal stripped t-shirt. Her hands in gloves of black kidskin rummaged in a small black purse hanging from her left shoulder. Her lean, long legs visible below the hem of her skirt were covered in black stockings and knee high flat heeled black leather boots.

"Do you have the cash Max?" she asked as she walked over, flat heeled boots clopping softly on the carpet.

"Yes, right in my coat pocket." Max confirmed as he opened the door of his room.

"You sure Max?" 99 asked as she stepped out into the corridor.

"Of COURSE I'm sure Ninety-Nine!" Max grimaced as he followed her out. "I have an uncanny sense of preparation! Why with one flex of my arms, I can account for every single item in every one of my pockets.—" Max declared as he shut the door.

A second later the door opened and Max trotted back in while 99 remained in the corridor, gloved hands resting on her black handbag under her left arm and sighing.

"—which is how I know now that I left the cash right in the room, inside the drawer in the night stand!"

With that, Max retrieved the large envelope and turned heading again for the door and the waiting 99 as he waved it in the air.

A few minutes later, they trudged across the carpark of the hotel towards their maroon Buick LeSabre, shoes and black leather boots crunching over the snow underfoot while flakes kept raining down on them.

"Max I'm worried." 99 expressed as Max started unlocking the car. "I mean, when Ancaster sells us the information, how do we know it's trustworthy?"

"Don't worry, Ninety-Nine." Max declared as he opened the doors and they climbed in.

As they shut the doors and Max reached for the ignition, he continued.

"With my EAGLE eye—with just ONE glance, I'll be able to tell if the information is true! You can rest assured Ninety-Nine, NOTHING absolutely NOTHING escapes the EAGLE eye of Maxwell SMART!"

"Is that so?" came the razor voice from behind them.

"Absolutely!" Max nodded as he inserted the key into the ignition.

"Max!" 99 cried out in alarm, twisting around in her seat, black leather gloved hand tearing out of her handbag with her over-under double barrelled derringer.

Max's eyes popped as he realized what was going on and twisted around as well, right hand lunging inside his sports jacket.

"Alright buddy! Hands UP!" he yelled, hand whipping out of his sports jacket and levelling at the figure lounging in the back seat of their Buick.

The observer in the back seat wrapped in his trench coat with his fedora on, chuckled humourlessly, tossing back the crown of his hat as he did.

And Max realized, he was actually aiming his own clenched fist with index finger and thumb extended, at the man. Eyes popping, Max quickly returned his hand into his jacket and this time, properly drew out the 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police.

"Alright Ancaster!" Max demanded as 99 maintained her Derringer's aim as well at the informant past the back of her seat. "WHAT's the big idea?! You said we were to meet at the park!"

99's heart beat alarmingly inside her breast as Ancaster reminded lounging and relaxed in the back seat and simply chuckled again, shaking his head. His painstakingly well-kept rich gray goatee and moustache cloaked his narrow jaws and upper lip. She estimated he was about the same age as the Chief but the Chief, though gruff and stern most of the time and prone to bouts of anger, usually towards Max, still had a genuine fatherly like nature towards most of his agents—including the source of his bouts of anger. This man however, had pitiless black eyes that glittered constantly with calculative, ruthless intelligence, lacking completely in warmth which was further substantiated as he spoke again in a dry, sharp tone.

"Maxwell SMART." His voice dripped with unconcealed disdain and loathing along with his glittering eyes that surveyed both of them with equal contempt. "How a pathetic-bumbling-clumsy-FOOL like you is still ALIVE after all these years or even managed to GRADUATE from spy school is the one thing that's beyond my comprehension."

"Apparently, TIME and PLACE escapes your comprehension as well." 99's modulated tone sliced through the air in the car. "We were supposed to meet at the park."

"Ninety-Nine, if you don't mind, I'LL handle this!" Max declared turning his head towards her.

"Sorry Max!" 99 spoke in a hushed tone nodding as Max turned back to Ancaster and declared.

"Apparently, TIME and PLACE escapes your comprehension as well! We were supposed to meet at the park."

Ancaster rolled his glimmering eyes in contempt as he stated.

"THIS is what you get for appointing a SPINELESS IDIOT as Chief of CONTROL!" Ancaster's head levelled again, his black eyes burning at them. "I ASSURE you, if I had become Chief, you'd be in the basement burying evidence with the DOGS the moment you graduated!"

He chuckled maliciously again, pleased at the puzzlement that crossed both their features.

"Oh! Your precious Chief didn't tell you? I was to be your Chief but for some reason the Pentagon, Joint-Chiefs and President of the time decided to appoint that mewling, SENILE old SOD!"

"Clearly, you've gotten over it." Max smirked flicking the muzzle of his Colt Official Police at Ancaster.

"Don't get cocky with me Smart!" Ancaster snapped, his black eyes flashing as he continued speaking with sheer contempt lacing every word. "I was in the intelligence line while you were still soiling diapers! For some reason Thaddeus has a soft spot for you. Thinks of you as the son he never HAD! That's the ONLY reason you're still around!"

"If you're such a great shoo in for Chief, then why are you working freelance now?" Max inquired, his beady eyes narrowing. "If you wanna show how much better you are than the Chief, how bout' handing over the information out of loyalty to all that's good and nice?!"

Ancaster frowned and shook his head.

"Good and NICE?! Who the hell TALKS like that?!" he scoffed before continuing. "Those air-heads in Washington could'ev made me the Chief and had the greatest intelligence organisation the world has ever known! Now they're just gonna make me rich and watch me humiliate Thaddeus! I've wasted enough time talking to you intellectual inferiors. Where's the money?!"

"Why aren't we meeting at the park?" Max demanded again.

"How CONTROL is still in business with incompetents like you and Thaddeus running the show is as-STOUNDING!" Ancaster laughed dryly before narrowing his eyes. "You have agents waiting da tail me there! Oldest trick in the book! Which I WROTE! Now where's the money."

"Where's the information?" 99 asked.

His eyes never loosing it's contempt dripping lock on them, Ancaster reached a gloved hand into his trench coat and pulled out a large thick envelope. His gloved fingers reached deftly into it and drew out several photographs which he handed to them.

"Sample." He said.

Max reached over and took hold of the photographs and shuffled through them. Each one was in colour and high resolution, showing a large barn with old cabins on either side of it. The front doors appeared to be facing North. Another of the photographs showed the semis arriving and entering the barn through the front door. A few of the others showed clearly, the black, veiled figure of SS-19 overseeing the Kenworth's arrival.

"You can see the license plates as well along with the paint job." Ancaster pointed out. "Obviously, S-S-Nineteen has had them repainted and the license plates changed since she purchased them."

"How did you KNOW about S-S-Nineteen and where she was?" Max asked

"It's my business to know and NONE of yours." Ancaster answered gesturing with the envelope. "The rest of the information is here. Location, route, even my observation point where you can watch them undetected. Money now. Or I go to the CIA, NSA AND Joint-Chiefs who are just WAITING for CONTROL to fall on Thaddeus's face—again."

Max took a deep breath and looked over at 99, nodding at her and she returned his nod.

"Here you go Ancaster." Max said handing over the envelope with the money.

Ancaster snatched the envelope, opened it and counted the money swiftly before pushing it into his trench coat and handing over the rest of the contents of his envelope to them.

"Just so you know." Ancaster sneered, expanding his gray goatee and moustache. "I'll be running a high frequency electrical pulse over the envelope you gave me so you can forget about any tracking devices you put in it. Like I said, I wrote the BOOK on CONTROL. There's NOTHING you know that I don't."

"How bout' what the rest of the agents use the R in Llewellyn 'R' Ancaster for?" Max challenged.

To which Ancaster leaned forward, his black eyes as pitiless as a striking snake as he snarled.

"Rascal, ruthless, repugnant, retard, reprobate, repellent AND repulsive! Coined respectively by agents twenty-five, seventy-three, forty-six, forty-two, sixty-nine, thirty-four AND eighty-one. EACH one of them retired early on disability through 'UNFORTUNATE' occurrences in the CONTROL gym!"

Max stared at the snake like eyes of Ancaster before turning to nod rapidly at 99 who gasped.

"He…he REALLY does know everything!"

"Here!" Ancaster said slapping his gloved hand on the compartment between the front seats and turned to the door on his right.

"What's this?" Max asked picking up the piece of paper left there and reading it. "Swiss Bank account number?"

"I have no time or desire to see either of you again." Ancaster scoffed as 99 narrowed her blue eyes at him in anger. "I'll have more intelligence da sell on S-S-Nineteen's plan and I'll call you as it occurs and Thaddeus can wire the payment to my account before I give the information."

"What makes you think we won't find out on our OWN what her plan is?!" Max scoffed and 99 nodded emphatically in agreement.

Ancaster tossed his fedora crown back, laughing dryly and shaking his head. He was still laughing when he opened the rear right side door and stepped out into the snow without answering them. No sooner had the freelancer shut the door and walked off, 99 let out a breath which already frosted slightly due to the drop in temperature in the car from the brief opening of the doors.

"The NERVE of that man!" 99 exclaimed. "How could he TALK about the Chief like that and how could ANYONE ever consider him for the Chief's job?!"

"Why not, look at some of our past presidents." Max shrugged as he examined the rest of the envelope's contents.

For about 30 years short of a century, the Denver Mint premises had stood it's ground on a rectangular lot bordered by the two way West Colfax Avenue in the north and 14th Avenue at the South with Delaware Street at it's West length and Cherokee Street at the East length. And the solid, low 2-3 storey buildings that made up the mint appeared well on it's way to making it past the 100 year mark and beyond.

The main carpark was located at it's southern end with extensions along the east and west length around the main building. Mostly U.S Mint police cards occupied it's lots while several other squad cars were usually parked along the curb of the mint premises being a common site.

The most prominent section of the premises was L shaped with the horizontal portion of the L facing North at West Colfax Avenue, it's roof a russet brown colour. Attached to the vertical portion of the L on it's west side was a dark roofed 2 storey block. This block was narrow and attached on it's west side by a broader and lower white block whose southern end boarded the south ends of both the russet brown roof and dark roofed block sections. On the east side of the L shaped russet brown block were 2 smaller ancillary buildings facing Cherokee Street. Another carpark was located at the northeast corner of the mint premises this one primarily for the civilian staff. A 12 foot iron bar fence on stone foundations lined the perimeter of the entire premises.

In perfect contrast to it's immovable stonework was the fresh green orchard at the northern end comprising of a few well-groomed trees about 2 to 3 on either side of the front entrance and steps.

Inside the primary security command and control room, deep within the premises, the Chief stood again surrounded by electronic consoles and control panels and walls of closed-circuit t.v screens providing an image of almost every location within and outside of the Denver Mint. Armed U.S Mint police manned each console and the Chief with his titanium-steel alloy bib on over his tie and shirt spoke on his Wrist Communicator T-37 with the earpiece plugged in and in his ear.

"This is the Chief. All stations report in."

Various voices filtered over his ear piece one by one.

" _Harrington, overlooking West Colfax, clear…Watkins at Deleware and West Colfax, all clear…"_

In one of the trees in the orchard, the branches parted to reveal a man's head with a headgear of branches on his head. He looked left and right before reporting.

"Allan at Cherokee and West Colfax, clear…"

Somewhere else at a street corner, the lid on a mailbox lifted up and another agent's head appeared looking about before reporting.

"…Ackerman at Cherokee and West fourteenth, all clear…"

"… _Granger at Delware and West fourteenth, all…arrrgghhh! Stop that! Ow!"_

"Granger! Granger! What's happening?!" the Chief asked anxiously. "Watkins and Allan! Check on Granger! Report! Is it KAOS?!"

"… _Watkins to Chief…I have visual confirmation of commotion in the tree that Granger is in."_

"… _Allan to Chief! Visual confirmation of commotion in Granger's tree! Unable to determine the attacker. Should we assist over?"_

" _Watkins and Allan standby!" the Chief ordered. "Granger! What is your situation?!"_

" _Arrrghghh….you stupid! I'm gonna kick your…arggghhh…!" was Granger's reply_

"Ackerman and Watkins! Assist Granger now!" the Chief ordered before turning to one of the Mint Police officers at his console. "Can you get me a visual of that area."

" _Ackerman! ETA ten seconds!"_

" _Watkins! ETA Twenty-seconds!"_

" _Granger to Chief! Tell them to stand down! It's okay! I'm okay! Situation under control!"_ came Granger's relieved report.

"Granger, what happened?!" the Chief asked.

" _I almost lost my nuts but I'm ok now!"_ Granger replied.

"What?!" the Chief exclaimed staring at the zooming in close-circuit t.v image that the Mint Police officer was getting him.

" _The stupid chipmunk in the tree! He was trying to steal my bag of peanuts!"_ Granger declared. "It's okay! I got im on the run now and he's heading over to the next tree.

The Chief felt as though every ounce of strength had drained from his body as he closed his eyes and spoke into the T-37.

"Chief to Granger. Next time…LET-THE-CHIPMUNK-HAVE-the-NUTS!"

" _Right Chief. Really sorry! Sorry guys."_

" _Ackerman returning to mailbox at Cherokee and West Fourteenth."_

" _Watkins returning to my bench at Delaware and West Colfax…uh Chief. I'm gonna have da circle a bit before I resume my post. Could you have Harrington keep watch till I get back? I'm afraid people are staring."_

The Chief sighed and issued the order.

"Harrington please maintain over watch for Watkin's position till the situation stabilizes for him to resume his post."

" _Roger that Chief."_ Was Harrington's confirmation

" _Watkins to Chief. Thanks. Sorry bout that." Watkins replied_

"No problem Watkins. I understand. The running." The Chief nodded tiredly.

" _Not entirely_." Watkins said. " _I was undercover at the Silver Nugget casino and I didn't have time da change when Porter called us all over."_

"Yes, a black jack dealer running down the street would raise eyebrows." The Chief noted and his eyes immediately popped when a sensual, female voice came over the T-37's earpiece.

" _Actually, I was the cigarette girl and this outfit isn't athletics friendly. Things have…popped OUT over the top. Uh oh, MORE staring!"_

It took the Chief several seconds to realize his eyeballs were in danger of escaping their sockets before he flexed his neck to retain his composure and answered.

"It's...it's…I understand…WAT-kins! The public must be …startled! I'll tell the Mint Police to help."

" _Who do you think's doing the STARING?!—_ " Answered the female voice before it switched over to the normal male voice and yelled. "— _Yo buddy! Yeah you playing with the nightstick! PUT your eyes back in your sockets before I call your wife and CHOKE you on alimony!"_

The Chief's eyes widened again at the exchange just as a tall USMP officer walked over to him.

"Chief." He stated. "I have my men deployed in accordance to your instructions. We have extra men watching the vaults."

"Thank you Lieutenant Okolski." The Chief nodded gratefully. "We couldn't have gotten ready this quickly if it wasn't for the USMP's exceptional response and help."

"No problem." Okolski shrugged, resting his hands on his holstered revolver's grip and his utility belt. "I sure don't wanna have a forty-three year robbery-free-record broken on my watch!"

"That is NOT going to happen Lieutenant, I assure you." The Chief nodded confidently. "With our men working hand in hand, we'll stop KAOS for certain."

A beeping sounded over the Chief's T-37 and he excused himself and walked over to a corner to take the call.

"This is the Chief."

"Chief!" Max spoke on his shoe phone from their Buick with 99 turned to face him in the passenger seat. "We got the information from Ancaster."

"Good! Have the agents following him reported on his whereabouts?"

"Afraid not Chief." Max shook his head. "Ancaster surprised us in our car just before we left our hotel. He suspected we had the park staked out."

The Chief growled in a way he thought he only could when Max did something wrong before sighing to calm himself.

"Well, I'm not entirely surprised. Ancaster IS devious and he is an exceptional field agent. Won the Lamont Cranston Award for Shadowing TWICE! I doubt our agents could maintain surveillance without him spotting them anyway. Alright, what did he have to sell?"

"It's like he said Chief." Max confirmed. "He's got pictures and maps on the location of S-S-Nineteen's gang. At least, that's where they were when he took the pictures several hours ago. It's an abandoned barn with some old cabins around it up at Copper Mountain."

The Chief frowned as he mulled over the information for a few seconds before his eyes lit up and he declared.

"Yes! It makes sense! It's the perfect hideout! There's basically nothing up at Copper Mountain! I mean there's talk of turning it into a ski resort but nothing concrete thus far. The owners just use it as a weekend getaway in some cabins they've rebuilt."

"From the photos, it's definitely not THESE cabins." Max shook his head with disdain at what he saw in the photos. "But Chief I don't get it! First she was at Clear Creek and now she's gone over to Copper Mountain? I mean…she's moving further and further away from Denver."

"THAT'S exactly the point!" the Chief declared stabbing the air before him with his finger. "She trying to lure our attention as far away from the target as she can, especially because she must now suspects Hinkel is compromised. It also means she has no intention of aborting the mission. We're finally two steps ahead of KAOS this time!"

"Right Chief. What do you want us to do now?"

"I'll have Porter call the agents from the park and get them up here to the mint to reinforce our position. We have to be absolutely ready."

"But what about going after S-S-Nineteen at her hideout now?" Max asked.

"Too risky." The Chief shook his head and explained. "We'll never get the manpower we need up to the location on time. But we KNOW for certain they'll be coming to the mint. And on top of that, I have to admit—I don't TRUST Ancaster, no matter HOW good his intel seems."

"Oh yeah." Max nodded as 99 looked on. "He's not a fan of ours. Especially bout you stealing his job."

"I thought that would come up." The Chief sighed. "We'll get into that another time. Max, this is what I need you and Ninety-Nine to do. Go up to Copper Mountain. Do a detailed reconnaissance of the hideout. Get us up to date information so we can be completely prepared for them. Number of vehicles—I doubt they're only using the semis—size of her robbery unit, weapons, modifications made to the semis—everything you can Max. Observe them and tell us the moment they leave. Then follow them and report to me mile by mile on their location and progress so we'll know exactly where they are and when to expect them."

"Right Chief." Max acknowledged. "Oh Chief! Ancaster believes he'll be providing us more intel as things goes. So he's probably gonna be out there somewhere too. He intends da charge us for the intel as he delivers them and have us credit his Swiss Bank account."

"I wish I could see the look on his face when he realizes we already KNOW what KAOS' final target is!" the Chief fumed. "When we capture the entire gang, I'm going to show Ancaster just what he can do with his Three Hundred Thousand dollar intels!"

"THREE-HUNDRED-THOUSAND?!" Max's eyes popped. "Uh Chief. If we do a good job, could "I" have the three hundred thousand dollars?"

"MAAAX!" came the Chief's holler.

Max held the shoe phone out to 99 who looked at it in perplexed as he said.

"It's for you."


	8. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

The drive from Lakewood to Copper Mountain provided over an hour of the most stunning vista 99 had ever seen. On both sides of the I-70, through Idaho Springs, Georgetown, Silverthorne and Frisco, snow drenched mountains heralded their passage in the form of Mount Evans, Grays and Pettingell Peaks, Silver Plume Mountains and so many more she could not name.

"Oh Max, isn't this beautiful?" 99 gasped as their maroon Buick whizzed along on the I-70. "I hope we get da come back here some day when we're not on a mission."

"If we weren't on a mission, why would we be coming back at all?" Max asked incredulously as Silver Plume mountain dominated the horizon out the window on 99's side.

"Well, we could take in the sights together and maybe walk one of the trails up Castle Peak? They say it's gorgeous up there." 99 suggested, her eyes shining with hopeful blue light.

"Why go all the way up there when they've got perfectly nice photos of it on post cards you can buy right down at the gift shop? You can even mail it to me in Washington while you're up here."

"Never mind Max."

About half an hour after the end of their drive, Max was leading 99 by her gloved hand down a forested hill in semi-darkness. Their shoes and boots sank into the ankle deep snow on the forest floor as they negotiated the terrain, wrapped in parka coats over their suits. The closely packed tree branches brushed against them as they moved and they felt the hard rime on them shatter and rain upon them in icy stinging showers and sticking to Max's hair while 99 had her hood up shielding her head. Finally, they both crouched down at a spot close to the top of the hill on the other side from which they ascended.

"Okay. Lets take a look at that map and those photos." Max said where they hunkered down between two large oak trees, ice shards sliding off the shoulders and backs of their parkas.

"Here you go Max." 99 said handing over the envelope which Ancaster gave them while pointing with a black leather gloved finger. "I can see the barn and the cabins down there. Max do you have your bino-specs?"

"Here, Ninety Nine." Max said handing the equipment over while he looked over the photos and the maps and compared them visually.

99 looked through the bino-specs, adjusting the focus and the barn and surrounding cabins resolved more clearly.

"Yep." Max confirmed looking from the map to photo to the view before them. "This looks like the spot Ancaster told us about—where he took the photos. Anything Ninety-Nine?"

99 removed the bino-specs and shook her head sending snowflakes and pogonip flying off the hood of her parka.

"No sign of anyone outside or in the cabins and I can't see the North end of the barn pointing away from us. But the lights are on inside so there's likely people there." She reported

"Well, we can try circling around to get at the North end but it'll take forever in these hills and forests." Max griped looking about them.

"Or we can just go further down the hill on this side. It'll take us closer." 99 suggested and her delicate eyebrows creased as she pointed down with a leather gloved finger. "Max, I wonder why Ancaster didn't take up a position further down the hill. He'd be a lot closer and he could take better pictures. There appears to be consistent amounts of cover all the way down. Yet he stayed up here and used a long range telephoto lens."

The gradient of the hill was not overly steep and it got more manageable as they approached the midway point. The trees all around them rose high above their heads, providing as 99 had observed, very good cover from the barn and the cabins which were about 400 feet or more from the foot of the hill, across an area which were dotted only by one or two trees and just like the hill, with grass covered in snow, the longer stalks sticking out above the white sporadically.

Max took the lead and held onto 99's gloved hand as they proceeded down carefully from tree to tree, their boots and shoes digging up and crunching the tightly packed snow and sometimes sinking all the way to their shins while broken off hard rime continued to rain on them.

They had gone about 120 feet with about 300 feet to the bottom of the hill, Max and 99 stopped and couched down behind a thick oak tree to look through the trees. There was still no movement outside the barn.

"Well." Max shrugged sending snow and icy shards sliding off the shoulders of his parka coat, as he stared intently through the trees. "Either we wait out here till someone comes out. God! What is that stench?! I thought the wilderness was supposed to be fresh!?"

"They might not do that till they're ready to leave." 99 thought peering over Max's shoulder as she too placed a gloved hand over her nose at the olfactory assault of what seemed to be excrement. It had been building up for the last 5 or 10 minutes during their descent. "And if they leave immediately in the trucks, we won't be able to tell much."

"Closer it is." Max grimaced with a tilt of his head as he pinched his nose and they both stood up.

He almost took a step past the trunk of the tree they were hiding behind when 99 grabbed his arm pulling him back.

"Max wait!"

"What?! What?!" Max hissed, even more nasally than usual as he kept his nose pinched, looking around as 99 yanked him back down into a crouch, causing snow and ice to fall off his hair and her parka hood.

As they remained crouched, 99 reached out a gloved hand to carefully push aside the thick snow covered grass at the base of the oak tree they were at. As the snow fell away and the grass parted, both their eyes narrowed at what they found.

It was almost completely hidden in the vegetation and certainly man-made, standing out dichotomously against lush nature. A matt black cylinder about 8 inches long standing vertically. There appeared to be some form of spike extending from it's base which had been driven deep into the soil, holding it in place.

99 gasped looking up and about them as she gushed.

"Electronic surveillance!"

"They must have them on the hills from this level, all the way down to the bottom." Max scowled peering about the grass.

"THAT must be why Ancaster didn't dare come closer!" 99 declared.

"OR he was just disappointed bout' the tour brochures lying about the UN-tainted AIR up here!" Max growled pinching his nose again so that his next words increased in nasal pitch by a factor of 5 as his eyes began to water.

"Max! The smell. It's coming from the sensor."

Warily, Max squinted, following 99's gloved finger and he now saw, attached to the cylindrical device via a steel band, a small plastic phial which seemed to be filled with some kind of clear yellow liquid and the top was sealed with some kind of porous material to let the scent escape.

"As if the sensor isn't enough to keep people away? Is that PEE?!" Max exclaimed in a pronounced nasal hiss, still holding his nose.

"It's likely some kind of animal repellent to keep wildlife away so they don't accidentally trigger the sensors." 99 deduced before pointing forward through the trees towards the clearing separating the bottom of the hill from the structures. "There!"

Max again followed 99's gloved finger and he saw some movement in the clearing. A quadruped about 4 to 5 feet high at the shoulders, covered in fine light brown fur with a black tipped tail. It's neck was bent as it nuzzled the ground with it's nose, grazing on the grass on the snow covered ground while it's large black tipped ears twitched.

"Mule deer I think." 99 observed. "The repellent's probably actual or simulated Coyote urine."

"I hope it's the latter cause I really don't need the actual supplier creeping up on us around here." Max declared glancing about nervously in the diminishing visibility of the woods.

As they spoke, another deer joined the first in the clearing, also grazing, both devoid of antlers and their lighter built identifying them as does.

"Max." 99 thought. "If they're grazing freely down there—that must mean there's no repellent or sensors across the clearing! If we can get through the sensors up here, we might be able to get across to the barn."

"You're right Ninety-Nine." Max nodded and looked down at the sensor. "If I'm not mistaken, this form of sensor sends a motion detection field usually up to a height of three da four feet! If I can access the circuits inside, I think I can disrupt the field for bout a second, long enough for us to step past it but not enough da alert whoever's watching the monitors inside."

Quickly, Max reached into his jacket to pull out a miniature tool kit. As 99 kept watch on the barn, 86 used a thin screwdriver and a lock pick to open a small panel on the top of the cylinder to expose the intricate circuitry inside which blinked every few seconds with a green light.

"Ready Ninety? When I say so, move quickly over to that next tree right there but don't go further as that's where the next sensor probably is."

"Right Max!"

Max touched the circuit with the lock pick and the green light immediately changed to red and they both dashed past it, sending snow flying to crouch down at the next tree just a few feet further down. The red light turned green almost instantaneously.

Inside the barn's office, a KAOS agent dressed in a heavy cashmere turtle neck sweater and black pants sat at the electronics console, reading a newspaper. Over his pants, he wore the white anti-chemical jumpsuit with the top part hanging around his waist. On a black monitor screen, a matrix of green dots were displayed and while he was occupied reading the paper, one of them suddenly blinked red for less than a second, before turning back into static green. Then a while later, another dot further down repeated the action. The KAOS agent lowered the paper and took a look at the screen which seemed normal to him, before returning to his paper just as another dot blinked red for a millisecond.

It was painstaking work, circumventing the sensors in the dim light and moving down but finally, they reached the treeline at the bottom of the hill. As they hid behind one of the trees and looked across the 400 feet of clearing, Max decided.

"Alright, it's now or never." Max said with his tools touching the exposed circuit on the final sensor at this point. "We'll make a dash, all the way to the barn."

99 nodded, the light inside the sensor blinked red and they were off, dashing across the snow, Max pulling his 5 inch barrelled Colt Official Police revolver from it's shoulder holster as they ran.

Snow flew and sprayed with their every step as they dashed across the clearing and 99 was already shivering as they sprayed her stockinged thighs. The 2 Mule deer lifted their black noses and black patched heads from the grass to look on curiously as the duo dashed by across the clearing, wondering why these two legged creatures were trampling over perfectly good chilled grass.

Their breath fogging the air beyond their mouths, they finally reached the barn doors though Max almost ran right into it, which would have set off a wooden clatter loud enough to wake any creatures in hibernation. Fortunately, 99 grabbed hold of his coat, yanking him back just as they reached it, with Max's arms wheeling in circles trying to catch his balance, his eyes wide and lips pulled back from his teeth in fright.

They finally settled down, pressing their backs against one half of the large double doors. Slowly, Max reached his fingers into the crack between the doors and slowly eased the right side panel of the double door opened slightly, praying it did not creak with age.

Fortunately, it did not and Max managed to peer inside. Immediately he saw, about 20 feet from the door, the rear bumper of both the Kenworth's box trailers where the trucks were parked side by side. Now he could hear voices issuing from beyond the semi's at the opposite end of the barn.

Inside the barn, at the Northern end, in the 30 to 40 feet of space between the front fenders of the Kenworth W900 tractor units and the front doors, were two large tables at which over a dozen men sat. They were all dressed similarly in sweaters or long sleeved t-shirts and pants with their anti-chemical jumpsuit bottoms on while the top either hung at their waist or were tied in position with the sleeves. Approximately in line with them, at the west wall of the barn was the office inside which the surveillance console was set up.

"Ssssh! Shoo!" came 99's urgent whisper over Max's shoulder.

"Ninety-Nine!" Max hissed back over his shoulder "Would you stop shooing me?! I can't SPY properly if people are shooing me...uuuuhhhh!"

Max cut himself off, as he turned and his eyes popped upon realizing what 99 was shooing at.

One of the Mule deer had trotted over to them and was now nuzzling 99's hip with it's black nose.

"Get rid of it!" Max whimpered in a high pitch wobbly voice as he flattened himself against the door and the woodland creature, nearly 5 feet at the shoulder continued nudging 99 with it's large black nose.

"It doesn't fear humans!" 99 realized in a hushed exclamation. "The land owners who vacation up here must be feeding them or something!"

While Max cowered against the door, 99 reached out placing a gloved palm against the deer's neck and shoved against it, turning it away before patting it's rump, hoping it won't kick her. Luckily, the deer seemed to realize no exotic snacks were forthcoming and began walking away from them, it's black nose grazing and ploughing through the snow as it did.

"Let's get in there before it comes back." Max suggested and they both edged their way in silently through the gap in the double door.

Moving stealthily, they approached the back of the box trailers. As they did, Max and 99 realized that in-addition to their primary rear double doors, these trailers also had a hydraulic ramp, hinged at the bottom edge of the trailer's rear, enabling it to be lowered mechanically to serve as a vehicle and loading ramp.

Both vehicle's rear ramps were lowered down to the floor at the moment to enable access to the double doors. Max went over to the semi on the right while 99 took the other and each crouched momentarily beside the lowered ramps to look under it at the license plates before nodding to each other. 99 was about to join Max at the semi on the right but he signalled her to wait and he hurried over to her instead, keeping an eye out for the men. Trying to keep behind the semis for cover, Max and 99 ascended the ramp of the left Kenworth, up to the top where the box trailer's rear doors were. Max peered around the edge to look down the enormous length of the trailer and tractor unit.

Drapikowski, in a baggy yellow sweater sat at a table with another 6-7 men, smoke rising from their cigars and cigarettes as they played cards. The diminutive, horse shoe moustached KAOS agent issued a cackling laugh, sending his cigarette twitching between his teeth as he slapped his cards down.

"Straight flush! Ha! Pay up boys!"

The other men sitting with him squinted at his cards.

"I thought we were playing gin?" a man to his right frowned.

"Veren't vee playing Doppelkopf?" an agent with combed back and gelled flaxen hair, crystal blue eyes and prominent cheekbones that tapered into a hard distinctive jawline and narrow prominent chin, wondered.

"What're you idiots talking about?!" Drapikowski exclaimed tossing up his hands. "When we began we agreed it was poker!"

"I zhot u vere coughing!" the flaxen haired KAOS agent declared.

"Mio dio!" another KAOS agent on Drapikowski's left, equal in build to Lorenc with a fearsome oval face and jet black hair styled into a breaker with sideburns, tossed his cards down. "You are all a..a…bunch of idiota scimmia! WE were playing Tressette!"

"Vee don't even know vhat zhat EES!" the flaxen haired agent on Drapikowski's right exclaimed with both palms up in the air.

As the KAOS agents kept arguing, Max drew back.

"I count about sixteen…seventeen men at the tables?" He whispered.

"Another one inside the office I think." 99 nodded. "There's automatic weapons on the table along the east wall."

"Let's take a look inside the semis." Max nodded.

With that, they turned to the double rear doors of the semi they were hiding at. Like the other semi, the trailer's rear double doors were ajar and Max quietly pulled one half of it open sufficiently for them to slip inside. Light however was severely limited inside the long trailer and they could not make out anything inside the gloom.

"Ninety-Nine, you got a flashlight?"

"Just a second Max."

99 rummaged into her black handbag on her left arm and a moment later, a powerful beam of light pierced the dark and illuminated almost half of the length of the trailer's interior. At first they thought it was empty but as they walked a few steps in, the cone of light revealed the other end of the trailer and the 2 vehicles there, parked end to end. They appeared to be jeeps with hard top covers. The vehicle at the head of the trailer was black while the one behind it was a pale gray.

"Land Rovers. Series II or IIA." Max noted. "Off-road vehicles."

"They probably have at least two more in the other truck." 99 supposed as they walked up to the nearest vehicle and she illuminated the interior with her flashlight.

The beam revealed some neatly folded white anti-chemical suits on the passenger seats in the back, 2 on each block bench facing each other. Each folded suit had a GP-5 gas mask resting on it, the masks's circular glass eye pieces reflected the light from 99's flashlight making them look like the heads of some glowing eyed bug-eyed monster.

"Spares I guess." Max shrugged. "And the Land Rovers should be enough for all of them."

He was interrupted by a loud creaking sound towards the trailer's rear doors and both spun around with Max aiming his Colt Official Police. They saw nothing except the vertical bar of light from the slightly opened rear doors of the trailer but both froze anyway, expecting the KAOS agents to come in any moment. The creaking sound came again and 99 whispered into Max's ear over his shoulder.

"It's coming from outside."

To which Max turned and repeated.

"It's coming from outside…" he stopped himself grimacing at what he was doing.

But their blood turned cold at what followed as they heard one of the men at the tables at the Northern end of the barn asked.

"What was that?!"

The men at both tables looked up from their card hands and turned to look towards the southern end of the barn past the lengths of the two semis.

One of the men at the other table, turned to Lorenc.

"You shut buck door?"

The burly Lorenc grimaced and scowled.

"It's just the wind. C'mon! I'm winning here!"

The flaxen haired KAOS agent at Drapikowski's table yelled at the office.

"Lacza! Anyzing on zer scanners?!"

The KAOS agent in the office turned to look at the motion detector representation dots on the monitor screen which displayed a steady green throughout before turning back and replied shaking his head.

"Nem!"

"It's probably vun of zhose animals." The flaxen haired KAOS agent deduced, returning to his cards.

"Well go SHUT the door before this place turns into a zoo!" Drapikowski snapped with his cigarette in one hand.

"I shut zer zoor? Vhy don't YOU go shut zer door?" was the reply.

"Oh, somebody's afraid of little Bambi!" Drapikowski mocked, his horseshoe moustache twitching.

"You zer vun afraid of ZOO!" the Flaxen haired agent exclaimed, his crystal blue eyes widening as he shrugged with his hands raised to the ceiling.

"SANTO CIELO!" the oval faced, black haired Italian KAOS agent tossed down his hand and jumped to his feet, sending his chair's legs rattling over the wooden floor. "You all bunch of lo stupido idiotas! I go!"

"You're the best Specchi!" Drapikowski called after him.

The agent walked off, his thick anti-chemical overshoe boots stamping hard on the wooden floors as he strode towards the space between the two tractor units to walk down between them to the other end of the barn.

"Drapi! You touch my cards I kick your culo!" the departing KAOS agent yelled over his back and Drapikowski who was reaching across the table for the cards shrank back grumbling.

99 gasped in horror as they heard the encroaching stomping of the KAOS agent's.

"Don't worry! Leave this to me!" Max declared and he ran back towards the other end of the trailer with 99 close behind him.

Reaching the double doors, Max grabbed hold of the bar handle across the back plate of the double doors.

"Max no!"

99's warning came too late as Max pulled on the bar and that side of the double door clicked into place, cutting off the light almost completely except for thin slivers around the 4 edges and down the middle of the double doors.

Specchi frowned at the loud click turning his head to look at the semi-trailer on his right as he proceeded down the path between the two. He continued walking but reached behind to the base of his back and drew from his belt, a Beretta M1951 fitted with a 6 inch suppressor over it's extended barrel. Holding it in both hands and pointing it before him, his thumb locked back the hammer.

Finally, he reached the rear of the trailers and looked about at both corners at this end of the barn before turning to look at the rear of both box trailers.

On the other side of the closed double doors, 99 switched off her flashlight and they shuffled quietly to one side against the trailer's walls, hiding in the dark. Outside, Specchi with his silenced M1951 pointed at the floor was looking back and forth between the rear of both the box trailers trying to figure out what caused the sound. A loud clacking behind him spun KAOS agent around, M1951 aimed at the source.

The one side of the double doors of the barn which was ajar swung inwards and clacked against the other side half before bouncing back against the force of the wind.

"Aaaaargggh!" Specchi growled, lowering the suppressed M1951 as he stomped up to the barn doors where he yanked it shut with a resounding clatter and secured the bolt.

Turning, he stomped back nosily, proceeding between the Kenworth's down their length back towards his companions, yelling as he did and gesticulating with the suppressor of the M1951.

"It's da WIND! Waan of you il testone LEFT zer door UNLOCKED!"

Inside Max and 99 breathed out with relief.

"Let's get out now!" Max declared and ran towards the centre of the trailer's double doors with 99 trailing behind.

"But Max, that's what I was trying to tell you! I heard the trailer doors lock when you pulled it shut!"

"Don't be ridiculous Ninety-Nine!" Max grimaced in the gloom. "I didn't do anything to lock the door!"

"It might be one of those self-locking doors Max."

"That's ridiculous! Why would you have a self-locking door on a semi?! It's not a bathroom! Self-locking DOOR indeed!" Max scoffed at her. "Would you shine your flashlight here so I can see if there's another handle."

99's flashlight lit up most of the door as Max pushed at the bar again but the door would not move.

"Wait, there's a sign under the bar." Max said bending to read it.

"What does it say?"

Bent over, Max read.

"Beware-This-Is-A-Self-Locking-Door."

As 99 closed her eyes in dismay and titled her head back, Max straightened and as he jerked a thumb at the trailer door, declared with a sagely nod.

"You know something Ninety-Nine. Call it what you will—intuition, sixth sense, a hunch—but I gat a feeling this is one of those Self-Locking-Doors."

"Ooooh Max!" 99 exclaimed softly leaning against the door. "What're we gonna do now?!"

"Don't worry Ninety-Nine, some of these trailers have additional access doors."

99 shone her flashlight around the long space.

"No other access doors on the sides." She noted before titling the beam up to the roof.

"There! In the roof!" Max pointed

Illuminated by the flashlight, was a trap door of sorts in the ceiling at the front end of the trailer and they discovered a ladder also bolted against the front end wall of the trailer leading up to it.

"But Max!" 99 objected as she followed Max towards the other end of the trailer where the Land Rovers were. "We can't climb out now, they'll see us!"

"They're too busy with their poker game!" Max declared. "Let's take a chance and…"

Max stopped as they reached the closest Land Rover for a sound cut him off. They listened for a moment as it grew louder, seemingly coming from the North.

"Is that another vehicle?" 99 asked.

"Just give my highly trained, perfectly honed Secret Agent senses a moment to analyse it!" Max declared with a raised finger as he continued listening carefully.

The sound grew louder and louder until finally they heard one of the KAOS agent's yell.

"It's S-S-Nineteen in her car! Let her in!"

Max straightened nodding with satisfaction.

"It is—another VEHICLE!" to which 99 gave a lopsided grin in the flashlight glare as she squinted at Max, her eyes throwing back a blue glow.

At the northern end of the barn, all the KAOS agents were on their feet waiting while Lorenc and another agent was holding the large doors open as a black, gleaming Mercedes-Benz 200D (W110) glided in. But it stopped with it's rear bumper still outside the door and the driver's side door opened.

The immaculately dressed Udo jumped out but before he could turn to get to the rear left passenger door, it opened and the black veiled and dressed form of SS-19 eased out silently yet swiftly, closing the door behind her.

"Geh jetzt, Udo." SS-19's voice sliced out from behind the impenetrable veil.

Udo nodded and got back into the black Mercedes-Benz. He was already backing out as SS-19 approached the gathered KAOS agents.

"Men!" SS-19 called.

All the men who were at the tables hurried forward in a chorus of stamping overshoe boots. The cacophony which could be heard echoing through the building cut off abruptly as they stopped at an arms-length from her and she waited for Lorenc and the other agent to finish closing the doors and join them before she began.

"Zhere haz been a change een plans." SS-19 announced. "Vee must move out now."

All the men frowned looking at each other and Drapikowski raised a hand.

"Eeeeeh sure boss! Whatever you say but uh…it's only bout an hour and a half to Denver and it aint even half past five yet. I thought we wanted da wait till ten so the guards are more relaxed and tired. Plus if we head out now, we'll hit the traffic."

"Eet cannot be helped." SS-19 answered, unmoving as a black veiled statue. "I have just spoken to zer Oberführer. KAOS' plans for zer gold und silver haf accelerated. Vee cannot vait. Owver advance team are alveady undervay. Make final preparations. Vee move out een…"

SS-19 stopped talking leaving all the men waiting. As they started to gape at each other and her, SS-19's cartwheel hat brim tilted upwards and her veil settled on her face momentarily, outlining a sharp nose. Her hat brim rotated clockwise then counter clockwise as she seemed to look about the dilapidated high ceiling of the barn with the assembled men looking on nervously.

Inside the trailer, Max and 99 were both frowning, listening intently, wondering why the leader had stopped talking.

The KAOS agents all jumped, some of their boots bumping loudly on the floor as SS-19s hat brim whipped back into position as she looked back at them, and her voice as usual permeated the air seemingly without a breath, this time only for her men to hear.

"Somevun ees een here."

Again, none of the men could figure out how, but her silenced Luger P08 with the integral suppressor in the barrel, was somehow in her gleaming black leather gloved hand at her side. Her other gloved hand lifted and gave flicking hand signals to the men.

Immediately, they all turned and ran towards the east wall where they grabbed the automatic weapons. As they slapped in box magazines and yanked the charging bolts to ready the firearms, creating metallic racket, SS-19 walked straight, her kitten heeled black shoes clacking on the wooden floor and she continued speaking, louder now.

"Quickly! Ready your veapuns und equipment. Vee must be avay vithin five minuten!"

"Right boss!...Jawohl!...Sì signora!...You gaddit boss!...Da ser!...Oui monsieur!" her men chorused as they readied their weapons and without any further commands ran about, splitting flawlessly into 3 groups, 2 of them proceeding down either side of the 2 semis along the east and west wall while the third followed behind SS-19 as she walked swiftly down the centre between the 2 huge vehicles, Luger P08 aimed before her.

Despite the fact that she was not running, she kept pace with the other 2 groups of men who were running along down the sides of the semis at the east and west walls with weapons pressed to their shoulders

"Max! They're coming for us!" 99 exclaimed softly to Max.

"They're just getting ready to leave, you heard her!" was Max's reply.

"No Max! I have a feeling she knows we're here!" 99 insisted looking about the inside of the trailer. "We have to hide!"

"Let's go out the roof!" Max grimaced pointing upwards.

"They'll cut us down for sure before we're ten feet of the door Max!" 99 declared, her blue eyes shining seemingly with their own light in the gloom. "Max! The Land Rover! If we start it up and drive out when they open the door, we might stand a chance!"

They suddenly heard the shuffling and stomping of feet on either side of them and Max quickly yanked open the door of the Land Rover and both he and 99 jumped in.

Outside, SS-19 emerged from between the rear ends of both box trailers before her men on either side did, the suppressor muzzle of her P08 sweeping from left to right. Inside the trailer, Max took hold of the Land Rover's steering wheel and reached for the ignition.

"The…the key's not here!" Max scowled and they started rifling through the glove compartments, dashboards and various other recesses inside the vehicle.

SS-19 swept to the right, P08's suppressor aimed at the south-western corner of the barn where a clutter of old furniture, and used farm machinery were piled up.

"Oh Max! It…it's not here!" 99 said as she searched the glove compartment.

Outside, as the 3 columns of men moved swiftly down their individual flanking routes, SS-19's Luger slowly moved from the pile of junk in the south-western corner, clockwise along the old wooden walls till finally, she was aiming up at the double rear doors of the box trailer on the left. It took a millisecond for her eyes behind her veil to flick over to the doors of the trailer on the right which was ajar while the one on the left was locked. As the group of men following her spread out, SS-19 stepped up onto the ramp and began moving up, her suppressed Luger aimed at the double doors.

Inside the Land Rover in the semi-gloom, Max tossed his hands up, declaring as he looked about.

"They've gat the keys Ninety-Nine! There's only one thing that can save us now."

"What's that Max?!" 99 asked searching overhead at the sunshield again.

"A tow-truck." Was Max's reply causing 99 to pause her search as she gave him a sideways squint and frown.

SS-19's left black leather gloved hand closed around the lever style door handle on the box trailer's double door her other hand maintaining aim with the Luger while her group of men stood to either side of the ramp submachine guns pressed to their shoulders and aiming at the door with 2 men behind her for cover.

SS-19 turned the lever door handle an inch and froze when a movement to her right whipped her towards that direction, sighting down the barrel of her Luger and her eyes widened behind her veil.

"Là bas! Là bas! I zee zhem!"

SS-19 whirled in alarm at the shout that came from the men flanking down the east side and the massive space of the barn rocked with automatic fire, defending in their intensity in the enclosed space.

Inside the Land Rover, Max and 99 ducked their heads and Max threw himself over 99 as he expected bullets to drill through the trailer wall on their right.

A stack of crates and old tables at the south-eastern corner began splintering and exploding in small sections as the automatic hail storm of bullets smashed into it.

"Nein! Nein! Cease FIRE! Cease FIRE!" SS-19 shouted and despite her form fitting black surged dress, leaped off the ramp's right side to sail over the heads of the men positioned there and landed on the ramp of the box trailer on the right. She flattened herself near the right side edge of the trailer's rear as she continued to yell. "CEASE FIRE! FEUER EINSTELLEN! CESSATE IL FUOCO!"

"Stop firing!...She SAID STOP FIRING!...Prekratite ogon'! Prekratite ogon'!...Stop firing!...Cessez le feu!... Cessez le feu!...Eef zhat means _shotp firing_ , YOU zer vun who shtarted le FEUING een zer FIRST place!..."

"Oooh shut-UP et reet a BOOK you analphabète Nazi!" returned the French KAOS agent as the firing finally ceased.

"I going to shove zhat book up your ARSCH, Pepé Le Pew!"

As the KAOS agents yelled and insulted each other, SS-19 leaped off the ramp and walked over to the partially destroyed pile of crates and furniture and pushed aside a crate that had been sliced nearly in-half before pushing aside the bullet hole pitted table beneath it. A movement in the debris made the KAOS agents at the east wall stop arguing while the group at the west wall and the centre group gathered a few feet away watching SS-19.

Out of the debris, a furry head with a black patch followed by a long neck emerged, big, black tipped ears twitching, pointing it's big black nose in her direction.

"Oooooh zeeeeear! Owver Foie gras eees COOKED now!" the French KAOS agent gritted his teeth and exchanged similar glances with his colleagues.

The doe Mule deer scuttled free of the broken crates and furniture and looked about it, twitching it's ears.

"Open zer door!" SS-19 called to the men behind her.

Immediately, two men ran over to the southern barn doors and pulled them open to provide 2 feet of space. SS-19 shooed at the doe her veil still unwavering, waving her gloved hand at it and it seemed to withdraw from her nervously before finally darting past her and disappearing out the gap in the door, the clopping on it's hoofs on the wooden floor replaced by retreating crunches of snow.

SS-19 then turned to face all her men at the same time. She did not say a word but immediately, every one of them started talking at the same time.

"Vee locked zer door!...Yah veee locked it!...We checked every two minutes!...Those stupid deers are really smart!...Ja! Ja! Zhey learn to open locks!...Ochen', ochen' umnyy!...Oui! Oui! Smart!...Deer learn varly gyorsan!..."

Inside the Land Rover, both Max and 99 breathed out long breath of relief.

SS-19 raised her left forearm and sliced her black leather hand through the air so fast there was a soft whooshing sound and every one shut up immediately.

"Vee leave een five minuten. Everyvun eento vun truck. Gehen!" came the whispered voice from behind the veil and somehow every single one heard it.

"Da ser!...Yes boss!...Right boss!...Jawohl!...Oui madame!...Igen asszonyom!... Sì signora!..." the men chorused as they ran off, the entire barn rocking with their stomping overshoe boots.

Drapikowski hurried over to SS-19, his submachine gun slung across his back to report.

"Oh boss! Plan E-D-Forty is in place."

"Gut." SS-19's hat brim tilted forward. "I must get veady. Get zer men eenside zer truck qvickly."

"Roger boss!" Drapikowski nodded and ran off.

Max and 99 inside the Land Rover continued to listen to the sounds outside the trailer.

"Max, they sound like they're all over the place! How do we get out?!" 99 exclaimed "And if they decide to come into THIS trailer, it's all over!"

"Now, now Ninety-Nine! Don't be such a doomsayer!" Max protested. "I mean, just because we're surrounded by KAOS killers, outnumbered, outgunned with no means of escape, taking cover in a soon-to-be-discovered hiding place—it DOESN'T mean something BAD is going to happen!"

Outside, the Doppelkopf-championing German KAOS agent who had argued with the French KAOS agent, hurried up the ramp of the semi on the left, submachine gun in his hand. Following behind him were 6 to 7 more similarly armed men, checking their weapons with clicks and clacks of bolts and safety switches. They waited as his gloved hand grabbed the handle on one side of the double door and turned it with a loud click, releasing the lock.

Inside, the trailer, the door could be seen opening and the vertical bar of light in the middle grew into a fan of revealing radiance, lighting up the interior.

Max and 99 sank down hurriedly in the Land Rover's seats with Max's eyes popping in horror as one side of the double door continued to swing open letting in a square of light that swept over the floor walls and ceiling of the trailer.

As the light reached the Land Rover and illuminated both Max and 99, the former, eyes wide with impending doom whimpered.

"We're gonna dieWe're gonna dieWe're gonna dieWe're gonna dieWe're gonna die!…"

TO BE CONTINUED

Written by

 **Resurgent** **-class**

 **Yes! I know! Didn't think you'd make it to the end of this part did you? Well you did and I surely appreciate it! I hope you'll head on to Part 4, hopefully without overdosing on caffeine!**

 **Now, Trivia time again! Sorry, my translations for the non-English languages is getting worse. That'll teach me not da note it down as I write! Sigh! Apologies! Hopefully with shorter fan-fics in future, I'll be able to do a better job! Till then, anyone who speaks any of the languages feel free da drop me a line in the reviews on it. Thanks!**

As Max argues with the mechanical arm in his car as they are being pushed towards the gasoline tanker truck, he tells 99 to never let him be such good friends with a machine. This joke is directed at the impending friendship he will develop 11 episodes after this fan-fic in Season 1, Episode 19, Back to the Old Drawing Board, with the robot Hymie.

Nighthawk 2 yelling at the mechanical arm: " **Idi k chertu** you **glupyy, mekanikal slaboumnyy**!" (This one is off the mark I think. Russian speakers help anyone?)

 **Go to hell** you **stupid, mechanical idiot**

Where the mechanical hand from Max's car punches through the windshield of the KAOS van, my homage and a shout-out to The Terminator (1948) and the one and only Linda Hamilton as the original Sarah Connor, who started it all!

As he is tossed about by the mechanical hand, Nighthawk 2 hollers about KAOS' 6 week convalescent leave which again is mentioned in Season 2, Episode 2, Strike While the Agent is Hot.

Max trying cover up his real interests: "They have the best bur…ni-shing…Yes! Burnishing! They got the best burnishing shops there and you…you know how I like my copper utensils…uh…shiny!" What Max almost blurts out is of course "burlesque clubs". His love of these establishments only intensifies in the original series with CONTROL's new cover for their Lab at The Golden Rooster Follies Theatre in Season 3, Episode 12, Classification: Dead and the presence of their always uncovered/undercover scientists Dr. Steele and later Dr. Simon. And sadly for 99, Max's interest in such erotic entertainment does not diminish even after their marriage with her unhappiness expressed in Season 4, Episode 18, I Shot 86 Today.

When they realized SS-19, Gerd and Kerstin had escaped after the National Museum robbery, Max states he will leave out certain details in his report to the Chief and when 99 asks which details, he answers "The details after—"Max, the back of the museum. Why don't we check out the back entrance and see what we can find?"" This is a slight reversal and modification of a famous gag utilized several times in the original series among them, Season 1, Episode 25, The Amazing Harry Hoo between The Claw and his henchman Bobo:

The Claw: "Now here are your orders. It is very simple. Go to the Freemont Hotel. When Ling How arrives—kill him. Get the shirt and leave this half laundry ticket on his body. Now, do you have that, Bobo?"

Bobo : "Yes Master. Just give me the last part again."

The Claw: "Which part?"

Bobo : "The part after 'it's very simple'."

The Claw: "Oooooh BOBO!

Season 2, Episode 27, Pussycats Galore:

The Chief: "Here are your instructions—you'll leave immediately on board a special plane for Germany. A car will pick you up at the airport, take you to a back road where you'll switch cars, drive back to the airport and take a jet immediately back to Washington. Have you got it?"

Max : "Not all of it, Chief."

The Chief: "What part didn't you get?"

Max : "The part after 'we leave immediately'."

The Chief: "I'll write it down."

The joke definitely appears in a few more instances throughout the series but I just can't recall where at the moment. Feel free to add on in your reviews!

Max quantifying his damage to the MPDC's fleet of squad cars: "That's ri-diculous! Half his fleet! Three Tenths!—One Third, maybe.—Two—Fifth, TOPS!" This joke where Max downplays damage or problems is also seen in Season 1, Episode 19, Back to the Old Drawing Board regarding Max's disruption to Dr. Shotwire's work while protecting the scientist. There are likely other examples in the original series. Anyone else who remembers please add on if you like in the reviews!

Max claims Delta Airlines doesn't have the movies The Treasure of the Sierra Madre or The Grapes of Wrath, which he wants to watch. These two titles references two other episodes of the original series whose titles were based on these movies, namely Season 5, Episode 5, The Treasure of C. Errol Madre and Episode 10, The Apes of Rath.

In the first scene in Colorado in the café as Max waits for 99, references are made to the events in Season 1, Episode 6, Washington 4, Indians 3, which occurred 3 episodes before this fan-fic. In particular, Max is still angry at 99 for bursting in to rescue him in the war tent just when Red Feather's amorous daughter is about to get intimate with him, despite knowing he is not her real tuppawassi.

The KAOS agent Auerbach, spotted by CONTROL West at Buttermilk Ski Area, is featured in Season 5, Episodes 15, House of Max & 16, House of Max, Conclusion, where he works with Dr. Raoul Duval who has perfected a formula to animate wax figures.

When the Chief questions how Rass Benito could top KAOS agent of any month since KAOS has better saboteurs, assassins and espionage agents, Porter nonchalantly replies the new ratings must be out. Rass Benito is featured in the original series, Season 2, Episode 14, The Whole Tooth and..., and the Chief's assessment is correct as Max takes him out with apparent ease off screen in a public place and hides his body without drawing any attention. The ratings joke in this fan-fic is a more succinct and slightly modified version of what is featured at least twice in the original series and movies (please let me know if I'm wrong), first in Season 2, Episode 23, Where-What-How-Who Am I?, between Max and the Chief regarding Schnell and Petroff's positions on the Most Wanted List and second in the feature film Get Smart, Again!, by Max and Beamish regarding Bronski being KAOS' top assassin. Originally, in this fan-fic, the joke featured the KAOS agent Auerbach, but upon re-watching the original series, I realised as late as Season 5, Episode 15, House of Max, both Max and 99 did not recognise him as they passed him at Duval's Cave of Wax, indicating he was likely unknown to CONTROL as at that time.

The CONTROL Agent, Porter is featured in Season 5, Episode 6, Smart Fell on Alabama where he is the "porter" on a train and assists Max to locate and incapacitate KAOS agent Bohrman. In this fan-fic, I attempt to create a bit of background for him as originally an agent stationed at CONTROL West. Here he even muses about being a porter thus providing some continuity for his appearance in Smart Fell on Alabama. Furthermore, the Chief states he will see if he can help Porter get a transfer in one or two years. This also segues neatly into a bit of continuity in the original series as early in Season 3, in the episode The Spy Who Met Himself, Max mentions they lost their Las Vegas secret headquarters. It is never explained in the original series what happened but it is logical to assume that the agents there would have to be transferred elsewhere.

The Chief mentions CONTROL's Inter-Office Top Secret Relay which is featured in Season 1, Episode 17, Kisses for KAOS, where their use is demonstrated and the Out-Going Rocks tray on the Chief's desk is clearly shown and how more messages would end up with more broken glass from the secret window behind the Chief's desk.

My apologies to readers who live in or have been to Colorado! My research is based solely on the wonders of google map! I actually have no idea whether the roads and streets I've mentioned were even there in 1965 but if any of you know, do drop a line in your reviews. For realism, the locations of the Soaring Eagle Inn and Spa and Happy Car's 24-HR Auto-Repairs and Car Wash, Donny's Doughnuts and it's neighbouring restaurants are based on locations of actual buildings I found in google map for the Lakewood area. The external design of the buildings of the Soaring Eagle is also based on the buildings visible at those locations in google map now. However, the names of all the companies I utilize are entirely fictional and bear no relation to any companies in existence and any similarities are purely coincidental. Any internal layouts of the buildings are either entirely made up or based on research from Wikipedia.

While at Donny's Doughnuts, Max asked for coffee black and 99 asked for cream and sugar in her's. Continuity is difficult to come by in the original series but this matches the facts in the very next episode of the original series that follows this fan-fic in terms of time-line, Satan Place. In the episode, Max gives some instructions to agents on raiding Satan Place, asking them to bring ropes, guns, 30 men and 3 thermos of hot beverages, final order, black coffee for him, cream and sugar as requested by 99 and a tea for the Chief. However, it should be noted that later in Season 3, Episode 5, Maxwell Smart, Private Eye, in the CONTROL cafeteria scene, 99 is seen drinking black coffee right from the pot without adding any sugar while Max adds up to about 16 spoons of sugar into his coffee before he complains of it being lukewarm. As always, this is probably done for comic effect but it has been about 3 years so it is reasonable that Max has developed a sweet tooth while 99 decided over time to opt to go on a healthier, reduced sugar diet. Yes, I know, I'm over thinking!

After Max lists out Rudolf Hinkel's tendency of killing tavern and bar owners who fail to appreciate or understand German liquor as he does and gaining a reputation, not as a maniacal killer which was 99's logical conclusion but as a connoisseur. This gag is featured in the original series Season 1, Episode 16, Double Agent, in which Max said Professor Parker tested the Ice-Cube Transmitter in every form of liquid resulting in his reputation, not as a perfectionist as 99 logically assumes, but as a drunk.

99 mentions to Donny and Lorie, CONTROL's secret headquarters in Cleveland which is established in the Season 3, Episode 3, The Spy who Met Himself.

Max mentions a Pussycat in this case someone named Veronica. He is of course referring to the scantily clad waitresses of the Pussycat Club, both of which are featured in Season 2, Episode 27, Pussycats Galore.

Just as in my first fan-fic Radio KAOS, Max in Donny's Doughnuts insensitively states that 99 is lacking in beauty simply because she does not fit his ideal image of a woman which is blonde and 5 foot 2 inches in height which are the qualities he asked for in Season 3, Episode 16, My Little Black Book.

Max exhibits shock that Lorie passed Torture on her first try at the CONTROL Training School in line with original series continuity as in Season 5, Episode 24, Hello, Columbus - Goodbye, America, it is revealed he failed Torture 3 years in a row.

Max mentions filing a claim with Standish who is featured in Season 2, Episode 3, A Spy for a Spy, where he is the Head of the Administration Section.

Donny says all profits of their F&B fronts go to the "Welfare and Morale of Surviving Agents-CONTROL West Division." This is something I made up but I based the structure of the name on the original series' "Guild of Surviving CONTROL Agents" featured in Season 2, Episode 2, Strike While the Agent is Hot.

SS-19 about Hinkel : "Zhat **alcoholisch dummkopf**! He vill…"

 **Alcoholic idiot**

Hinkel about SS-19 : "Zhat ees vy he asked ME to join zhis mission…to make sure zhat PET of ees deed not **VERMASSELN** zer mission again!"

 **Mess up** or **screw up**

SS-19 about Hinkel: "Hinkel, you VEAK-VILLED- **schürzenjäger-betrunken**!"

 **Womanizing** **-drunk**

SS-19 about Hinkel: " **Unmöglich**! Hinkel ees vun ov zer Oberführer's most highly prized…"

 **impossible**

The CONTROL Safe House at West Green Mountain Drive again is based on google map. For realism, I just looked for an area that was nondescript. The orientation of the house is based on google map but the interior is completely fictional. No other relation to any other facts in reality.

The entrapment and interrogation of the KAOS agent Hinkel is similar to the capture and questioning of KAOS agent Nealis in Season 1, Episode 24, Stakeout on Blue Mist Mountain. Basically it begins with the KAOS agent being distracted by a female CONTROL agent—99 for Nealis and Lorie for Hinkel. When Nealis discovers the ruse, he holds Max hostage while Hinkel does the same to Lorie, the object of the distraction, instead of Max. And similarly in both, some form of tactical, non-lethal force is used to subdue the KAOS agents with Agent 44 shooting the gun out of Nealis' hand while in the fan-fic Lorie stabs Hinkel before he is knocked out by Max. And finally, for Nealis, Max uses a clever interrogation technique to get the KAOS agent to reveal information they need while a truth/contradiction drug is used for Hinkel. Hinkel similar to Nealis, also boasts about the kind of torture he can withstand.

Hinkel refers to South America as KAOS' fatherland just as Siegfried does in the original series, Season 4, Episode 25, The Not-So-Great Escape, Part 1.

To contradict Hinkel into revealing SS-19's identity, Max claims SS-19 is Claudine Auger. Ms Auger is of course the breath taking French actress who in the very same year, scorched the screens as Bond girl, Domino Derval in the James Bond film, Thunderball.

The location of SS-19's hideout in Virginia Canyon Road, Idaho Springs, Colorado was of course sourced from Google Map where I simply looked for a place outside of the city, where there were barns or warehouses. The barn in the fan-fic is of course totally fictional and any resemblance to real barns are entirely coincidental.

In his drug induced mania, Hinkel reveals the profits generated by KAOS' restaurants. The idea of KAOS having an annual profit is featured in Season 2, Episode 24, The Expendable Agent, in which KAOS agent Sidney reads out the KAOS financial report.

Ancaster states that Max is only still an agent despite his incompetence because the Chief treats him like a son. This is confirmed finally in Season 5, Episode 22, Smartacus, when under the influence of Truth steam, the Chief rants on Max's constant failings as an agent and if he wasn't like a son to him he'd fire him!

The CONTROL West agent Watkins at the Denver Mint who alternates between a man and woman's voice and stating he is dressed as a cigarette girl is of course Agent Charlie Watkins, featured in Season 2, Episodes 22, Smart Fit the Battle of Jericho, and 27, Pussycats Galore.

Specchi at his poker partners: " **Mio dio**! You are all a..a…bunch of **idiota scimmia**! WE were playing Tressette!"

 **My god Idiot monkeys**

Specchi at his poker partners: " **SANTO CIELO!** You all bunch of **lo stupido idiotas**! I go!"

 **My goodness stupid idiots**


End file.
